What Causes Swollen Watery Eyes Along With Numbness Of The Facial Muscles?

Posted on Fri, 29 Dec 2017

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 Answered on

Wed, 30 May 2018 Last reviewed on

Question : My husband started with a sore ear or what he thought was an ear infection this past Saturday. Tuesday morning, he woke up and half his tongue was numb (but it came back Wednesday), and the muscles on his face, from his eye brow to his lip and cheek are numb and don’t work. Wednesday morning, his eye was swollen and watering and burning. Yesterday seemed to be the worst day. His eyebrow seems to be drooping and he can’t smile with the right side of his face.

Answered by Dr. Lekshmi Rita Venugopal (33 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Diagnosis: Bell's palsy

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thank you for trusting HealthcareMagic for your health concern

The symptoms your husband is experiencing is typical of Bell's palsy, which is caused due to inflammation and swelling of facial nerve, usually by viral infection.
Treatment requires initiation of oral steroids and anti viral medications. He can take Tylenol of pain is present. Apply warm compress on face for relief. You can also apply an eye patch on the affected eye. Please be advised to follow up with urgent care for confirmation of diagnosis and management, as the medications used for treatment require prescription.
Full recovery can take up to 6 months. Physical therapy can help in fast recovery.

Hope this answers your question
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Regards
Dr.Lekshmi

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D