Artikel
Acute peripheral unilateral facial nerve paralysis following minor surgery
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Veröffentlicht: | 3. September 2014 |
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Gliederung
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Importance: Peripheral facial nerve paralysis is an important clinical diagnosis which occasionally challenges physicians regarding its etiology. The annual incidence rate of peripheral facial nerve paralysis has been reported to range between 13 and 34 cases per 100,000 subjects. Epidemiologic reports show that about one-half of all cases of peripheral facial nerve palsy remain without identified etiology. These cryptogenic cases are named after the Scottish anatomist Charles Bell “Bell’s palsy”. Few cases have been reported after surgery like tooth extraction or shave skin biopsy of the nose.
Observations: We report a case of acute peripheral unilateral facial nerve paralysis following epidermoid cyst excision of the left cheek and discuss the possible underlying pathomechanisms with a short review of the literature.
Conclusions and relevance: Surgeons should be aware of acute unilateral peripheral facial nerve paralysis as a rare complication with arguable causality following minor surgery without anatomical relation to facial nerve branches.