Jingjin needling improves facial nerve function and psychosomatic function in Hunt facial para-lysis patients / 针刺研究

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effectiveness of Jingjin (muscle region) needling in the treatment of Hunt facial paralysis (HFP). METHODS: A total of 80 HFP patients were randomly divided into acupuncture and medication groups (n＝40 cases/group). Jingjin needling was applied to Yangbai(GB14) to Shangxing (GV23), Touwei (ST8), Cuanzhu (BL2), Sizhukong (TE23，penetrative needling), Dicang (ST4) to Jiache (ST6, penetrative needling), Yingxiang(LI20) and Xiaguan(ST7), Hegu(LI4), Yifeng (TE17), Yuyao (EX-HN 4), and Shenmai (BL62), with the needles retained for 30 min. The treatment was conducted once daily, with 10 consecutive days being a therapeutic course, and 3 courses altogether. Patients of the medication group received oral administration of Prednisone acetate (12 days), Acyclovir (7 days), intramuscular injection of Vitamin B12 and Vitamin B1(10 days), then, oral administration of Vitamin B1, successively. The therapeutic effect was assessed by using House-Brackman (H-B) facial function grading system (grade I to VI), traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) sign and symptom score, and facial disability index (FDI) scale including FDI physical function (FDIP, food and water swallowing, speaking-pronouncing, dryness or tearing, and mouth-opening) and FDI social function (FDIS, self-rating anxiety/depression scales), separately. RESULTS: After the treatment, the TCM symptom and sign scores for depth of nasolabial groove, nose shrugging, lower lip asymmetry, food retention and post-auricular pain were significantly lower in the medication group (P<0.05)．After the treatment, the TCM symptom and sign scores for frontal muscle movement, eyelid opening and closing, depth of nasolabial groove, nose shrugging, lower lip asymmetry, cheek blowing, food retention, latissimus cervicalis contraction, taste disorder, hearing hypersensitivity, tears and discomfort and post-auricular pain were significantly lower in the acupuncture group (P<0.05)．Comparison between two groups showed that the TCM symptom and sign scores for frontal muscle movement, eyelid opening and closing, depth of nasolabial groove, nose shrugging, lower lip asymmetry, cheek blowing, food retention, latissimus cervicalis contraction, taste disorder, hearing hypersensitivity, tears and discomfort and post-auricular pain were significantly lower in the acupuncture group than in the medication group(P<0.05)．The scores of FDIP and FDIS were significantly increased in both groups (P<0.01) and notably higher in the acupuncture group than in the medication group (P<0.01) after the treatment. The total effective rate of acupuncture group was 97.5% (39/40), and that of medication group was 72.5% (29/40). The therapeutic effect of the acupuncture group was significantly superior to that of the medication group (P<0.01)．. CONCLUSION: Jingjin needling has a good therapeutic effect in improving facial nerve function, psychosomatic function and clinical signs and symptoms in HFP patients, evidently being better than medication.

Influencing Factors Analysis of Facial Nerve Function after the Microsurgical Resection of Acoustic Neuroma

OBJECTIVE: To explore and analyze the influencing factors of facial nerve function retainment after microsurgery resection of acoustic neurinoma. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of our hospital 105 acoustic neuroma cases from October, 2006 to January 2012, in the group all patients were treated with suboccipital sigmoid sinus approach to acoustic neuroma microsurgery resection. We adopted researching individual patient data, outpatient review and telephone followed up and the House-Brackmann grading system to evaluate and analyze the facial nerve function. RESULTS: Among 105 patients in this study group, complete surgical resection rate was 80.9% (85/105), subtotal resection rate was 14.3% (15/105), and partial resection rate 4.8% (5/105). The rate of facial nerve retainment on neuroanatomy was 95.3% (100/105) and the mortality rate was 2.1% (2/105). Facial nerve function when the patient is discharged from the hospital, also known as immediate facial nerve function which was graded in House-Brackmann: excellent facial nerve function (House-Brackmann I–II level) cases accounted for 75.2% (79/105), facial nerve function III–IV level cases accounted for 22.9% (24/105), and V–VI cases accounted for 1.9% (2/105). Patients were followed up for more than one year, with excellent facial nerve function retention rate (H-B I–II level) was 74.4% (58/78). CONCLUSION: Acoustic neuroma patients after surgery, the long-term (≥1 year) facial nerve function excellent retaining rate was closely related with surgical proficiency, post-operative immediate facial nerve function, diameter of tumor and whether to use electrophysiological monitoring techniques; while there was no significant correlation with the patient’s age, surgical approach, whether to stripping the internal auditory canal, whether there was cystic degeneration, tumor recurrence, whether to merge with obstructive hydrocephalus and the length of the duration of symptoms.

Surgery Effects in a Cohort of 42 Patients Received Facial SchwannomaResection and Facial Nerve Reconstruction Simultaneously / 听力学及言语疾病杂志

Objective To evaluate the effects of facial nerve reconstruction surgery by reviewing the clinical information and follow-up results of 42 cases.Methods The clinical data of 42 patients who were diagnosed as facial schwannoma and received tumor resection and facial nerve reconstruction simultaneously from January 2004 to December 2015 in our department were studied.The surgeries included anastomosis between the two faical nerves(3 cases), facial nerve transplantation(4 cases), Hypoglossal/masseteric-facial nerve anastomosis(27 cases) and cross-facial nerve graft(8 cases).We evaluated the facial nerve function using H-B grade and Fisch score post-operation (1 week, 3 months,6 months and 1 year after surgery).Results The Fisch scores were significantly different between 1 week and 3 months, 3 months and 6 months post-operation for patients received cross-facial nerve graft.The facial nerve function became better as time went by.While there were no difference between 6 months and 1 year post-operation.On the other hand, the scores were significantly different between 6 months and 1 year post-operation for patients received hypoglossal/masseteric facial nerve anastomosis.Conclusion Most patients received tumor section and facial nerve reconstruction simultaneously could gain good results, it took a long time for the facial nerve function to return to a stable state and some of them were still in recovering 1 year after surgery.

Approaches of Facial Nerve Function Evaluation (review) / 中国康复理论与实践

@#Facial nerve grading system (FNG) plays a crucial role in the diagnosis and treatment of idiopathic facial paralysis, and also serves as a primary tool for prognosis. Subjective grading systems are currently the most widely used methods due to their easy accessibility, popularization and low costs. Objective grading systems, which have obvious advantages in terms of index quantization, repeatability and consistency between evaluators, will become the mainstream in future application and possess development prospect despite their limitation of technology and cost. This article reviewd the clinical application of different types of FNGs in facial nerve grading among different periods, and made a summarization of currently-existing facial nerve grading methods. It may provide a scientific and reasonable reference to the constitution, filter and application of facial nerve grading systems in treating idiopathic facial paralysis.

Approaches of Facial Nerve Function Evaluation (review) / 中国康复理论与实践

Facial nerve grading system (FNG) plays a crucial role in the diagnosis and treatment of idiopathic facial paralysis, and also serves as a primary tool for prognosis. Subjective grading systems are currently the most widely used methods due to their easy accessibility, popularization and low costs. Objective grading systems, which have obvious advantages in terms of index quantization, repeatability and consistency between evaluators, will become the mainstream in future application and possess development prospect despite their limitation of technology and cost. This article reviewd the clinical application of different types of FNGs in facial nerve grading among different peri-ods, and made a summarization of currently-existing facial nerve grading methods. It may provide a scientific and reasonable reference to the constitution, filter and application of facial nerve grading systems in treating idiopathic facial paralysis.

Long-term facial nerve clinical evaluation following vestibular schwannoma surgery / Avaliação clínica tardia do nervo facial no pós-operatório de schwannoma vestibular

BACKGROUND: Facial function is important in accompaniment of patients operated on vestibular schwannoma (VS). OBJETIVE: To evaluate long term facial nerve function in patients undergoing VS resection and to correlate tumor size and facial function in a long-term follow-up. METHOD: Transversal study of 20 patients with VS operated by the retrosigmoid approach. House-Brackmann Scale was used preoperatively, immediately after surgery and in a long-term follow-up. Student t test was applied for statistic analysis. RESULTS: In the immediate postoperative evaluation, 65 percent of patients presented FP of different grades. Improvement of facial nerve function (at least of one grade) occurred in 53 percent in the long-term follow-up. There was statistically significant difference in facial nerve outcome in long-term follow-up when tumor size was considered (p<0.05). Conclusion: The majority of patients had improvement of FP in a long-term follow-up and tumor size was detected to be a factor associated with the postoperative prognostic.

CONTEXTO: A função facial é importante para acompanhamento dos pacientes operados de schwannoma vestibular (SV). OBJETIVO: Avaliar o grau de paralisia facial (PF) em pacientes operados de SV, correlacionando tamanho do tumor com função facial na avaliação tardia. MÉTODO: Estudo transversal com análise seriada de 20 pacientes com SV operados pela via retrosigmóide-transmeatal. A Escala de House-Brackmann foi utilizada no pré-operatório, pós-operatório imediato e pós-operatório tardio. O teste t de Student foi aplicado para análise estatística. RESULTADOS: No pós-operatório imediato, 65 por cento dos pacientes apresentaram graus variados de PF, sendo que 53 por cento destes obtiveram melhora de pelo menos um grau de House-Brackmann na avaliação tardia. Houve diferença significativa no resultado da função facial no pós-operatório tardio quando o tamanho do tumor foi considerado (p<0.05).Conclusão: A maioria dos pacientes da amostra apresentou melhora da PF no pós-operatório tardio, sendo o tamanho do tumor um fator associado ao prognóstico.

Surgical Management of the Facial Nerve Schwannoma / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The facial nerve schwannoma, hard to diagnose due to its rareness and relatively slow growth rate, is best managed by surgical procedures. We have tried to find the most useful management strategy for the facial nerve schwannoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed 11 cases of facial nerve schwannoma which were surgically treated. We analyzed the treatment results according to the age of the patient, the size and site of the tumor and accompanying symptoms. RESULTS: The clinical manifestations were various and surgical approaches were determined according to the age, site and size of the tumor, preoperative facial nerve function and hearing. When the preoperative facial nerve functions were better than House-Brackmann grade III, the results of the surgical treatments were favorable, but when worse than House-Brackmann grade IV, the results were unfavorable. CONCLUSION: For the treatment of the facial nerve schwannoma, the site and size of the tumor, age of the patient, preoperative hearing level and facial nerve function are considered as the decisionmaking factors. We proposed the flow-sheet of the management of the facial nerve schwannoma. Patients with no or mild facial palsy preoperatively can be managed by enucleation only. Patients with more than moderate degree facial palsy or large tumor can be managed by total resection with reconstruction of the facial nerve, which results in somewhat unfavorable results in respect to the facial nerve function.

An Experience of Acoustic Tumor Surgery / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Acoustic tumor which originates from the vestibular nerve is the most common neoplasm to be found at the cerebellopontine angle. The surgical approaches currently used for the acoustic tumor are the middle cranial fossa, the translabyrinthine, the suboccipital, and the combined approaches depending on the size, location, and growth rate of the tumor and the hearing level, age, and general health condition of the patient. This study was performed to evaluate the results of acoustic tumor surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed 12 acoustic tumor patients who were operated in the department of otolaryngology of the Severance hospital from June 1991 to December 1994. RESULTS: We could remove tumors completely except for two cases where the sizes of tumor were large. Postoperative complications were hearing loss, facial paresis, cerebral spinal fluid leakage, and intracranial hemorrhage. CONCLUSION: From our experience of acoustic tumor surgery, we could suggest the following strategy for patients with acoustic tumor: 1) Hearing preservation surgery has to be chosen in case of the intracanalicular tumor with serviceable hearing: 2) When the tumor extends to the cerebellopontine angle: functional preservation of facial nerve is the prime goal for the patients: and 3) A total removal of tumor without considering the functional preservation is not always the best method of treatment.