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Clinical analysis of acute peripheral facial palsy in older adults

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 January 2022

D Y Jeong ,
H Kim  and
S I Cho Open the ORCID record for S I Cho [Opens in a new window]
D Y Jeong
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Chosun University College of Medicine, Gwangju, South Korea
H Kim
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Chosun University College of Medicine, Gwangju, South Korea
S I Cho*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Chosun University College of Medicine, Gwangju, South Korea
*
Author for correspondence: Prof Sung Il Cho, Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Chosun University, 365 Pilmun-daero, Dong-gu, Gwangju 61453, South Korea E-mail: chosi@chosun.ac.kr Fax: +82 62 225 2702
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Abstract

Objective

Acute facial palsy is a consequence of various diseases, with the number of patients increasing with advancing age. This study aimed to analyse the clinical characteristics of acute peripheral facial palsy in older adults.

Methods

A total of 30 patients with a mean age of 68.4 ± 9.1 years were included in the study. All patients received a standardised investigation and follow up. The hospital charts of the patients with acute facial palsy were reviewed retrospectively.

Results

The predominant causes of acute facial palsy in older adults were: Bell's palsy, Ramsay Hunt syndrome, trauma, otitis media and malignancy. At baseline, complete and incomplete facial palsies were seen in 26.7 per cent and 73.3 per cent of patients, respectively. The overall rates of good recovery, partial recovery and no recovery were 66.7 per cent, 10 per cent and 23.3 per cent, respectively. Increased age led to a significantly lower level of recovery in older adults.

Conclusion

Bell's palsy and Ramsay Hunt syndrome were the most common aetiologies of acute facial palsy in older adults, and such patients are likely to have incomplete recovery. Active early treatment is necessary for achieving good outcomes in older adults.

Keywords

Facial ParalysisBell PalsyAgedEtiology

Information

Type
Main Article
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 136 , Issue 11 , November 2022 , pp. 1113 - 1117
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of J.L.O. (1984) LIMITED

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Footnotes

Prof S I Cho takes responsibility for the integrity of the content of the paper

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