Background: Bell’s palsy (BP) is the most common cause of unilateral lower motor facial palsy. Recurrent paralysis of the facial nerve is unusual and reported in only 7-8%.
Methods: A total of 394 consecutive patients with acute BP patients were enrolled at Daegu Catholic University Hospital from July 2005 to September 2012. We classified the patients into two groups-single BP and recurrent BP-and compared them by patient characteristics, clinical features, MRI findings, electrophysiologic findings and prognosis. The degree of BP was graded according to the House and Brackmann facial nerve grading system.
Results: Recurrent BP was observed in 31 (7.9%) patients. The number of recurrence was varied from 2 to 5. The recurrent BP (9.7%) had more incidence of family history and MRI enhancement than those of single BP (2.2%, p=0.047). The single BP (63.4%) had better recovery than recurrent BP (45.2%, p=0.045).
Conclusions: The recurrent BP had more incidence of family history, MRI enhancement and poor prognosis than the single BP.

Citations

• Characteristics and Treatment Methods of Bell’s Palsy in Patients Visiting Korean Medicine Hospitals From August 2018 to July 2021
  Hyeon Kyu Choi, Min Ju Kim, Young Rok Lee, Hyun Ji Cha, Hyun Jin Jang, So Jeong Kim, Ju Hyun Jeon, Young Il Kim
  Journal of Acupuncture Research.2022; 39(2): 122.     CrossRef
• Correlation of Internal & External Factors with the Beginning Period of Improvement in Idiopathic Facial Paralysis※
  Hee Jin Sung, Su Sie Lim, Hyun Young Choi, Eun Yong Lee, Jung Du Roh, Cham Kyul Lee
  The Acupuncture.2016; 33(1): 57.     CrossRef
• A Clinical Study on Children and Adolescents Who Visited the Hospital of Korean Medicine for 284-Peripheral Facial Palsy
  Ki Yeon Kang, Hye Lim Lee, Jae Kyung Han, Yun Hee Kim
  The Journal of Korean Oriental Pediatrics.2014; 28(4): 45.     CrossRef

Background: Bell's palsy (BP) is a self-limited rapid onset facial palsy that is non-life-threatening and has a generally favorable prognosis. Facial paralysis can be caused by numerous conditions, all of which should be excluded before thediagnosis of BP is reached. The etiopathogenesis and clinical course of BP are uncertain. So we analyzed the epidemiology and clinical course of BP patients.

Methods: The subjects include 100 cases of BP examined during the period of 18 months. Careful clinical history, neurologic examinations, laboratory tests, electrophysiologic studies, and brain imaging were performed. Follow-up examinations were done once a week during the first month and subsequently once a month until normal function was restored or for up to 3 months. Facial nerve function was assessed by House-Brackman (HB) facial nerve grading scale and electrophysiologic studies. Results: Except 13 recurrent BP patients, we analyzed 87 BP patients. Forty-four (50.6%) were men and 43(49.4%) were women and the mean age was 51.0(