Patient's question:
Recently, my eyes and mouth have been feeling uncomfortable. I went to the hospital for a thorough examination and was told that I have facial paralysis. What is peripheral facial paralysis?Doctor's answer:
The recurrence of peripheral facial palsy can be quite harmful. Peripheral facial palsy primarily manifests as the disappearance of forehead wrinkles, the inability to frown, incomplete eyelid closure, and when trying to close the eyes, the affected eye quickly moves upward and outward, revealing the white sclera, known as Bell's phenomenon. The nasolabial fold on the affected side becomes shallow, and the corner of the mouth droops, causing the mouth to toward the healthy side when smiling. This does not affect the movement of the limbs. When pouting or whistling, air leaks due to the inability of the affected lip to close. During meals, food residue often remains in the buccal sulcus on the affected side, and saliva drips from this side. Because the lacrimal punctum is inverted with the lower eyelid, tears cannot drain normally and overflow.