Original Research
Effects of electrical stimulation in early Bells palsy on facial disability index scores
South African Journal of Physiotherapy | Vol 67, No 2 | a44 |
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajp.v67i2.44
| © 2011 P. Alakram, T. Puckree
| This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 05 January 2011 | Published: 05 January 2011
Submitted: 05 January 2011 | Published: 05 January 2011
About the author(s)
P. Alakram, University of KwaZulu NatalT. Puckree, Durban University of Technology
Full Text:
PDF (297KB)Abstract
Recovery following facial nerve palsy is variable. Physiotherapists try to restore function in patients with Bell’s palsy. The choice of treatment modality depends on the stage of the condition. Although limited evidence exists for the use of electrical stimulation in the acute stage of Bell’s palsy, some physiotherapists in South Africa have been applying this modality. This study examined the effects of electrical stimulation on functional recovery from Bell’s palsy using the Facial Disability Index, a tool that documents recovery from the patients’ perspective. A two group pre-test post-test experimental design comprising of 16 patients with Bell’s Palsy of less than 30 days duration was utilized. Patients with a clinical diagnosis of Bell’s Palsy were systematically allocated to the control and experimental groups. Patients (n=16) were pre-tested and post-tested using the Facial Disability Index. Both groups were treated with heat, massage, exercises and given a home program. The experimental group also received electrical stimulation. The FDI of the control group improved between 17, 8% and 95, 4% with a mean of 52, 8%. The improvement in the experimental group ranged between 14, 8% and 126% with a mean of 49, 8%. Certain clinical residuals persisted in a mild form in both groups on discharge from the study. The effects of electrical stimulation as used in this study during the acute phase of Bell’s palsy, quantified as the FDI was clinically but not statistically significant. A larger sample size, longer stimulation time or both should be investigated.
Keywords
bell’s palsy; electrical stimulation; facial disability index scores
Metrics
Total abstract views: 7488Total article views: 31943
Crossref Citations
1. Assessing Discomfort Levels During Facial Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Using Discomfort Level Scale: A Preliminary Study
Mohammed Safi
Indian Journal of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery vol: 74 issue: S3 first page: 5275 year: 2022
doi: 10.1007/s12070-020-02173-5