title: Outcome of peripheral facial palsy in children - a catamnestic study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Even though the etiologies, therapies and prognoses of acute peripheral facial palsy (PFP) differ among children and adults, not many studies focus on children.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed a retrospective study of 84 children, aged 10 months to 16 3/12 years, who were seen at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Switzerland between 1998 and 2007 due to PFP. Data about etiology, diagnostics and therapy were gathered from medical files, the outcome by questionnaires. Among 9 patients with residual symptoms, 6 returned for a follow-up visit and the results were documented with photographs. Recovery was graded by the House-Brackmann scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 83 unilateral and 1 bilateral case(s) of FP; neuroborreliosis (NB) causing 26 cases (31.0%), other infections 6 cases (7.1%) and toxicity of methotrexat 1 case (1.2%); 51 cases (60.7%) were classified as idiopathic (IPFP). Between the months June and November, the number of cases with NB rose to 53.3%, while there was no case between the months of January and April. Only 4 patients with IPFP received steroids. 75 patients (89.3%) recovered completely (HB-Grade I). 9 patients (10.7%) showed slight residual symptoms (HB-Grade II). Of these, 6 had IPFP, 1 had NB and 2 had otitis media (OM).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Almost a third of all palsies were caused by NB; during summer and fall, NB accounted for over half the cases. Patients with borreliosis showed a higher recovery rate than those with OM or IPFP. Almost 90% of the patients investigated recovered completely, even without steroid treatment. Residual symptoms were slight.
authors.affiliation: Ostschweizer Kinderspital, Claudiusstrasse 6, 9006 St.Gallen, Switzerland. felicia.drack@kispisg.ch
authors.forename: Felicia D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Drack
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Weissert
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005158:Facial Paralysis / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D020852:Lyme Neuroborreliosis / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D010033:Otitis Media / Q000150:complications; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012189:Retrospective Studies