[Prognosis and MRI findings in patients with peripheral facial palsy]

We examined a series of 21 peripheral facial palsy patients attempted to (17 Bell's palsy, 4 Hunt syndrome) with Gd-DTPA-enhanced MRI and attempted to determine the relation between prognosis and MRI findings. We divided patients into two groups based on facial palsy scores of Japanese facial nerve research: a good group (G-Group) and a bad group (B-group). The G-group scored over 20 points on the 20th day after the first visit and the B-group under 20 points. G-group consisted of 9 Bell's palsy and 1 Hunt syndrome patients, and the B-group of 8 Bell's palsy and 3 Hunt syndrome patients. The averaged facial palsy score of both groups was analyzed every week during 4 weeks. Recovery from the palsy was better in the G-group than the B-group (P < 0.05); the scores at the 4th week of the G- and B-groups were 32.6 +/- 15.2 and 7.8 +/- 7.4, respectively. The MRI findings of both groups were examined retrospectively. Nine of 10 G-group and nine of 11 B-group patients had abnormal contrast enhancement. The result of enhanced facial nerve segment was as follows:G-group, auditory canal 1, labyrinthine/geniculate 7, tympanic 7, mastoid 7; B-group, auditory canal 2,labyrinthine/geniculate 8,tympanic 8, mastoid 7. Our results indicate no relation between the prognosis and the MRI findings. Therefore, it is impossible to predict the prognosis of facial palsy from the results of Gd-DTPA-enhanced MRI.