Diagnosis and treatment for Bell's palsy associated with diabetes mellitus

The method of detecting diabetes mellitus and estimating the diabetic control status in patients with Bell's palsy, and the effect of high-dose steroid therapy for Bell's palsy accompanied by diabetes were investigated. From October 1987, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) was introduced to detect diabetes in 288 out of 372 patients with Bell's palsy, as a screening test for DM. Thirty-six diabetics with complete facial palsy were treated by high dose steroid therapy as described by Stennert. Hemoglobin A1c was useful in diagnosing diabetes and in assessing the diabetic control. Many patients under diabetic therapy kept their diabetes under good control. In cases of complete palsy, high-dose steroid therapy, at a cure rate of 97.4%, was highly effective in treating diabetes-accompanied Bell's palsy.