Facial Paralysis Care at University of Colorado Hospital
Why Choose Treatment for Facial Paralysis at University of Colorado Hospital?
University of Colorado Hospital's otolaryngology clinic provides the most up-to-date, sophisticated, and comprehensive approach to the diagnosis and management of facial disorders available in the Rocky Mountain region. When you choose UCH for care, you can be sure that your medical team brings both experience and expertise to your diagnosis and to your treatment.
What is Facial Paralysis?
Facial paralysis refers to the complete loss of voluntary muscle movement on one side of the face. The condition can cause pain as well as changes in the patient's physical appearance and senses of taste, sight and smell. By far the most common cause is Bell's palsy, a viral attack on the facial nerve that causes it to become inflamed. Bell's palsy affects about 11 in 1,000 persons.
Facial paralysis can also be caused by:
- Stroke (cutoff of blood flow to the brain)
- Brain tumor
- Inflammation of lumps of cells in the face (sarcoidosis)
- Lyme disease (inflammatory disease caused by a tick bite)
- Other viruses