Facial diplegia: etiology, clinical manifestations, and diagnostic evaluation

Abstract

Objective Facial diplegia (FD) is a rare neurological manifestation with diverse causes. This article aims to systematically evaluate the etiology, diagnostic evaluation and treatment of FD. Method The study was performed retrospectively and included 17 patients with a diagnosis of FD. Results Patients were diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) (11), Bickerstaff’s brainstem encephalitis (1), neurosarcoidosis (1), non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (1), tuberculous meningitis (1) herpes simplex reactivation (1) and idiopathic (1). In addition, two patients had developed FD during pregnancy. Conclusion Facial diplegia is an ominous symptom with widely varying causes that requires careful investigation.

Isolated Facial Diplegia: A Rare Presentation of Guillain-Barré Syndrome

“…In contrast, bilateral facial nerve paralysis is notably rarer, occurring at a rate of one in 500,000 individuals. Intriguingly, only 20% of these cases are idiopathic [ 1 ], while the remainder are associated with a range of potentially serious medical conditions.…”

Severe hyponatremia and bilateral sequential facial palsy: A case report

“…Severe hyponatremia, without an adequate rise in other osmoles required to balance extracellular fluid osmolality, can result in increased water retention within cells and ultimately lead to fatal cerebral edema [14] . In such cases of serum hypotonicity, various homeostatic mechanisms, collectively termed "regulatory volume decrease," are employed to maintain cell volume [ 14 , 15 ].…”

Diplejía facial aislada como variante atípica del síndrome de Guillain-Barré tras sospecha de infección por SARS-CoV-2

“…Puede producirse como respuesta a múltiples causas, entre las que destacan: síndrome de Guillain-Barré, tumores meníngeos y troncoencefálicos, agentes infecciosos (Borrelia, sífilis, VIH, VHS, VEB o tuberculosis) y una forma idiopática (parálisis de Bell). Además, se han descrito casos asociados a etiologías menos frecuentes como sarcoidosis, traumatismos craneoencefálicos, linfoma, leucemia, causas metabólicas como la diabetes o neuropatía alcohólica y causas congénitas como el síndrome de Moebius (1,4,(6)(7)(8) . En el caso descrito, la realización de una TAC craneal sin alteraciones descarta la etiología tumoral o hemorrágica.…”