title: Potential of an electric prosthesis for dynamic facial reanimation.
abstract: Chronic facial paralysis is a devastating condition with severe functional and emotional consequences. The current surgical armamentarium permits the predictable reestablishment of a protective blink as well as good resting symmetry. Yet the ultimate goal of symmetric, spontaneous emotional expression remains elusive despite significant progress in the areas of peripheral nerve grafting and free tissue transfer. This commentary explores the possibility of an implantable electrical prosthesis for facial reanimation. It reviews animal studies supporting this concept as well as recent human data suggesting that such an implant could rescue denervated facial musculature, thus overcoming a major hurdle for existing reanimation techniques.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. gargriff@med.umich.edu
authors.forename: Garrett R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Griffin
authors.forename: Jennifer C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D002908:Chronic Disease; D004558:Electric Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D004576:Electromyography; D005149:Facial Expression; D005158:Facial Paralysis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D019736:Prostheses and Implants; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods; D011788:Quality of Life; D016896:Treatment Outcome