Massage Pathology Chronicles

Bell’s palsy is characterized by facial paralysis on one side. The paralysis is usually proceeded by pain behind the ear that lasts for a few days. It happens quite suddenly. Usually the person will go to bed at night fine and wake up in the morning with the condition. People with this condition experience paralysis or sometimes just weakness on one side of their face. The face will droop on the affected side and the expression will remain flat. If the upper part of the face is affected, you will be unable to blink your eye or it will be difficult to blink. Doctor’s are still unsure as to the cause, but know it has to do with the function of cranial nerve VII. They think that it could be an inflammatory condition that affects the nerve. Facial muscles attach to the skin allowing us to make many expressions. When these muscles are paralyzed, they begin to atrophy. Massage can be used to stimulate circulation in the face and maintain the health of the muscles. Massage can also help encourage the muscles to move and ease the discomfort associated with Bell’s palsy.

Tags: Massage Therapy Pathology, Massage Pathology Chronicles, Massage Therapy Bell’s Palsy, Massage Therapy Nervous System Pathology

This entry was posted on March 8, 2010 at 2:58 pm and is filed under Nervous System Pathology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.