title: Intracranial longitudinal splitting of facial nerve: a new approach for hemifacial spasm.
abstract: A new surgical technique for the treatment of hemifacial spasm consisting of longitudinal splitting of the facial nerve in the cerebellopontine angle is described. Thirty-three cases have been treated with good results. Follow-up of 20 cases for 1 year or more showed no recurrence or facial paresis. One case required a second operation. The novelty of this approach lies in its effectiveness in relieving the symptoms without running the risk of overmanipulating the aberrant artery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Shandong Provincial Hospital, Jinan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Fan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002530:Cerebellopontine Angle; D005152:Facial Muscles / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005154:Facial Nerve / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013035:Spasm / Q000601:surgery*