Symptoms:

• Rapid onset of mild weakness to total paralysis on one side of your face — occurring within hours to days.
• Facial droop and difficulty making facial expressions, such as closing your eye or smiling.
• Drooling.
• Pain around the jaw or in or behind your ear on the affected side.
• Increased sensitivity to sound on the affected side.
• Headache.
• A loss of taste.
• Changes in the amount of tears and saliva you produce.

Complications:

• A mild case of Bell’s palsy typically disappears within a month. Recovery from a more severe case where the face was completely paralyzed can vary. Complications may include:
• Irreversible damage to your facial nerve.
• Irregular regrowth of nerve fibers. This may result in involuntary contraction of certain muscles when you’re trying to move other muscles (synkinesis). For example, when you smile, the eye on the affected side may close.
• Partial or complete blindness of the eye that won’t close. This is caused by excessive dryness and scratching of the clear protective covering of the eye (cornea).

Causes:

• Damage or swelling of the facial nerve, which carries signals from the brain to the muscles of the face.
• Damage to the area of the brain that sends signals to the muscles of the face.
• Congenital (at Birth) Facial Palsy.
• Moebius Syndrome.
• Surgery or Medical Procedures.
• Trauma.
• Tumors.
• Viruses.
• Lyme Disease.
• Infection of the brain or surrounding tissue.
• Sarcoidosis.
• Tumor that presses on the facial nerve.

Tests that may be ordered include:

• Blood tests, including blood sugar, CBC, (ESR), Lyme test
• CT scan of the head
• Electromyography
• MRI of the head

Line of treatment:

Line of treatment of Facial paralysis:

• Abhyanga (oil massage)
• Mridu swedana (mild sweating treatment)
• Nasya (Nasal drops)
• Nadi balya
• Brmhana Dravya prayoga
• Snigdha-Amla-and Lavana rasa prayoga and Vatahara oushadha (Vata balancing medicine and treatment)

Panchakarma Treatment:

• Nasya
• Shirodhara
• Tharpana
• Shiro Pichu
• Mukhabhyanga
• Panasa Patra Sweda
• Gandusha
• Kavala
• Karna poorana
• Thala
• Ksheeradhara
• Pichu
• Shirovasti
• Ksheeradhooma
• Lepana and rehabilitation therapy

External oils for application:

• Karpasathyadi taila
• Mahanarayana taila
• Mahamasha taila
• Saindhavadi taila
• Sahacharadi taila
• Prabhanjanam taila
• Laghuvishagarbha taila
• Vishagarbha taila
• Prasarini taila
• Bala taila
• Ksheerabala taila
• Balaashwagandadi taila
• Dhanvantara taila

Oral Ayurvedic medicines:

• Mahayogaraja guggulu
• Dhanvantara Gulika
• Ekangaveera rasa
• Brihat vata Chintamani
• Maha Vatavidhwansa rasa
• Sameerapannaga rasa
• Vatagajankusha rasa
• Kaishora guggulu
• Rasnadi guggulu
• Maharasnadi Kashayam
• Ashtavarga Kashayam
• Dhanadanayanadi Kashayam
• Maharasnadi Kashayam
• Dhanvanthara Kashayam
• Dashamoola Kashayam
• Dhanvantara Gritham
• Guggulu thiktaka Gritham
• Ashwagandadi Gritham
• Ashwagandarishta
• Balarishta
• Dashamoolarishta
• Ashwagandadi lehyam
• Brahma Rasayana
• Dashamoola Rasayana

Wholesome diet and habits:

• Warm water
• Lukewarm milk
• Black gram
• Wheat
• Red rice
• Drumstick
• Garlic
• Raisins
• Meat soup

Unwholesome diet and habits:

• Etiological factors
• Stress and strain
• Bitter and dry substances
• Fried eatables
• Work exhaustion

Single herbs useful in facial paralysis:

• Lashuna - garlic
• Nirgundi - Vitex negundo
• Lavanga - Clove - Syzygium aromaticum
• Sarshapa - Mustard
• Rasna - Alpinia galanga
• Masha - Black gram
• Bala - Sida cordifolia
• Hingu - Asa foetida
• Guggulu - Commiphora mukul