Is acupuncture beneficial in the treatment of Bell's palsy?

Abstract

A best evidence topic in facial nerve surgery was written according to a structured protocol. The question addressed was: in [patients with Bell's palsy], does [acupuncture] improve [facial nerve function and/or pain]? A total of 43 papers were identified using the reported search protocol, of which three articles represented the best available evidence to answer the clinical question. Two of these articles were review papers and together encompassed 13 primary articles. Publication details, type of study, patients studied, outcomes and results are tabulated. The two level 1 articles concluded that before firm conclusions can be drawn, better designed trials are required in order to establish whether acupuncture confers any benefit to patients with Bell's palsy. The level 2 randomised controlled trial (RCT) suggested that two methods of acupuncture were associated with significant improvements in pain in Bell's palsy, although the trial was poorly controlled and had risk of bias. Therefore, the clinical bottom line is that until well designed trials are able to clearly demonstrate a role for acupuncture in Bell's palsy, its efficacy should be considered to remain unproven.

Brain Responses to Acupuncture Are Probably Dependent on the Brain Functional Status

“…In China, acupuncture is frequently used to treat diseases and disorders of the nervous system such as stroke, dementia, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, carpal tunnel syndrome, headache, and Bell's palsy [2]. Although some studies concluded that there is inadequate evidence to support the effectiveness of acupuncture for Bell's palsy [50, 51], a number of other studies have provided evidence that acupuncture is beneficial [2, 52, 53] or, as reported [54], that the efficacies of acupuncture, steroids, and natural course of recovery in Bell's palsy were the same with respect to the degree of recovery and speed of recovery. More importantly, Bell's palsy is a transient peripheral motor disease from which most of the patients would recover in several months and in which the brain anatomical structure was not significantly altered [55, 56].…”

Efficacy of Acupuncture for Bell’s Palsy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

“…Cumberworth et al [ 60 ]. investigated evidence on the topic of acupuncture in patients with Bell’s palsy from 1948 to January 2012.…”

Acupuncture Treatment of Diplopia Associated with Abducens Palsy: A Case Report

“…7-9 Liang et al 7 reported in 2006 that acupuncture and moxibustion exert a definite therapeutic effect on Bell palsy. In addition, Cumberworth et al, 8 in a Best Evidence Topic, reviewed the effectiveness of acupuncture in Bell palsy and concluded that the role and efficacy of acupuncture in Bell palsy should be considered unproven until well-designed clinical trials clearly show a benefit.…”