How facial palsy caused by birth injuries can traumatically affect newborn babies

Facial palsy, otherwise known as Bell's palsy, is a common birth injury affecting newborn babies. Read more about what a birth injury is.

The most common feature of the condition is drooping of the facial muscles due to malfunction of the facial nerve. The facial nerve controls the face muscles and causes them to contract. It is also known as the seventh cranial nerve. It has a complex route from the brain stem to the face muscles it controls, which lift the eyebrows, close the eyelids and move the cheek muscles.

Everyone has two facial nerves which work together to allow the face to show expression by smiling, crying, winking, whistling and kissing.

Causes of facial palsy
Most of the time, facial palsy has no obvious cause. Occasionally, however, a difficult delivery which involves the use of forceps can cause a birth injury like facial paralysis if procedures are not carried out correctly.

When the facial nerve is damaged just before or at the time of delivery this may cause paralysis to the same side of the face stimulated by the damaged nerve.

Paralysis normally affects part of the face, especially the muscles around the eye and the mouth. If the face muscles are weakened on one side, the mouth is usually pulled to the normal side when the baby cries.

Facial paralysis can also be caused by compression or damage to the facial nerve while in the mother's womb and after birth via viral infection of the facial nerve, bacterial infections and HIV. Read more at www.bellspalsy.org.uk

Changes to the eye
The way facial palsy affects the area around the eye is particularly important. If the eyelid sags or there is an ectropion (an outward turning of the lid margin), this may result in a watering eye or an inability to close the eye. For a newborn baby who wants to sleep, this can be extremely distressing. The eye can also be red and vision may become blurred.

Treatment
Osteopathic manipulation is a popular treatment for a birth injury like facial palsy, along with face massage and the application of gentle heat to reduce pain.

Other treatments and therapies include a form of physical therapy known as "facial retraining" and surgery to relieve pressure on the facial nerve, although surgery is not recommended very often. Facial reconstruction is also available.

Birth injury compensation claim
Any birth injury affecting a newborn baby is extremely upsetting for everybody involved. We understand that you will feel concerned about your child's health and want to seek personal injury compensation if medical negligence is the cause of their distress.

We will listen sympathetically to you; explain clearly how the personal injury compensation claim process works and what we can do on your behalf.

Our personal injury solicitors are experts at dealing with birth injury cases and have an excellent success rate.

Call us now on 0800 10 757 95 to find out how to make a birth injury claim.