What is a smile?
 |
A smile is what we like to see on children. The brain sends waves of happiness
throughout the body, and the nerves in the face cause the muscles to retract,
creating a smile. The same nerve, about seven thousand of them, create creates
laughter, crying, a frown, or the all loveable, sticking out the tongue.
Yes these nerves do a lot. The brain sends the signals, the nerves respond and
the muscles respond to the stimuli. For the mouth these nerves cause saliva. For
the ear they help with hearing and body balance. They work the taste buds in the
tongue. With this group of seven thousand nerves, if something goes wrong, usually
it will be more than one thing, and that can cause a catastrophe. |
Loss of taste, loss of tearing, loss of balance, twitching, facial weakness, even a
drop of the face on one side or a mask-like effect to the face. All of these are horrible
conditions. When signals come from the brain they enter the facial nerve where it enters
the temporal bone (ear bone) which is a very small bone tube about one and a half inches
long. This part of the nerve works with hearing and balance. The main nerve then wraps
around the three middle ear bones in back of the eardrum and then through the mastoid,
which is the bony area behind the ear that is visible.
Then the facial nerve passes through the salivary glands and divides into many braches.
These branches, if you will, are like fingers stretching across the face. These fingers have
hundreds of tributary nerves coming off of them. These nerves supply the muscles of the face
with the signals from the brain.
 |
All this comes from one tiny highway from the brain, and sends signals back to the brain as
well. All of this happens at the speed of light to where we never even notice it. We never
even notice it until something goes wrong that is.
This nerve affects all the muscles in the brain. If anything causes this nerve to be blocked,
then it will cease to operate. If left too long the nerve can go dead. In a few cases this
can be fixed with major surgery, but unless it is a child most people have to live with it
the rest of their lives.
|
Another thing to consider is why this can happen. Bad teeth that cause infections that are not
cared for immediately can cause it. Several incurable viruses including herpes simplex can cause
it. A Karate match or other sports can cause it, or something as simple as laying on a pillow
wrong or falling and hurting the inter ear bone pinching or collapsing on the nerve itself.
Most of these can be cured with plastic surgery. Of course viruses cannot be cured, but surgery
can relieve the pressure in the ear bones that cause the problem. Please feel free to contact us
for any of your facial surgery needs. We have what is considered the most advanced techniques
in the facial paralysis field along with surgeons who are widely known and respected.
A pinched or damages facial nerve can cripple your looks for the rest of your life, so seek
immediate medical attention. Please call us anytime at the Facial Paralysis Institute so we
can start on treating your condition today.
|
