Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 7, 2026
04:18
Modeling Ascending Vaginal Infection, Preterm Birth, and Neonatal Morbidity in Mice
Published on: October 10, 2025
297
Risk factors for pregnancy-associated Bell's palsy: A nationwide population-based register study.
Lovisa Lansing1,2, Elin Marsk1,2, Sophia Brismar Wendel3,4
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
Acta Obstetricia Et Gynecologica Scandinavica
|December 30, 2025
Summary
Pregnancy-associated Bell's palsy affects 171.6 per 100,000 births. Risk factors include high BMI, certain geographic origins, multiple pregnancies, and conditions like gestational diabetes and preeclampsia.
Area of Science:
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Neurology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Bell's palsy incidence during pregnancy varies, necessitating larger studies to identify risk factors.
- Pregnancy-associated Bell's palsy (PABP) requires further investigation into its incidence and associated maternal risk factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the incidence of PABP.
- To identify maternal risk factors associated with PABP.
Main Methods:
- Nationwide register-based cohort study in Sweden (2005-2015).
- Identified women with Bell's palsy and childbirths using national registers.
- Defined PABP as diagnosis during pregnancy or within 2 months postpartum.
- Used multivariable logistic regression to identify risk factors.
Main Results:
- Incidence of PABP was 171.6 per 100,000 births.
- Associated risk factors included high BMI, non-European/North American birth origin, multiple pregnancy, herpes zoster, borreliosis, gestational diabetes, and preeclampsia.
- Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) ranged from 1.30 (high BMI) to 6.55 (herpes zoster).
Conclusions:
- PABP incidence is 171.6 per 100,000 births.
- Metabolic stress-related factors are associated with PABP, though causality is undetermined.
