Facial Nerve Palsy
What does facial nerve palsy cause in the eyes?
Facial nerve palsy causes brow ptosis ( drooping of the eyebrow ), weakness of the orbicularis muscle (whose role is to close the eye), and ectropion (drooping of the lower eyelid).
The combination of the above often leads to continuous watering of the affected eye, and a significant reduction of the visual field, or in many cases, a complete blockage of the visual field in an otherwise normal eye.
Practically, as the brow drops it covers partially or completely the eye.
Additionally, there are cases of facial palsy where the eye is not able to close adequately, leaving the cornea ( the front of the eye ) exposed to drying. The result of this can range from being constantly irritating to outright dangerous for the eye.
Here we see a patient who was suffering from severe eyebrow drooping, a significant ectropion, and a small exposure of the cornea due to inadequate closure.
After restoration, the eye's ability to see has returned, and the cornea's hydration has become normal again. The entire repair was completed in 45 minutes under local anesthesia, similar to removing a mole.
Below, we will see a patient whose main issue was corneal exposure, as the eye could not close adequately and was constantly irritated, 24 hours a day.
After the repair with a gold plate, the patient can close their eye normally, even seconds after the completion of the surgery.
This repair was completed in 15 minutes under local anesthesia. Its goal is to drop the eyelid enough so that the visual field remains unchanged but eyelid closure becomes restored.
For complex or simple eyelid problems, you can contact us and we will help you. Dr. Siskos is the only trained eyelid plastic surgeon in Thessaly.
Eye and Eyelid clinic
