Bell's palsy is one of the most scary things that one could get. How it happens is not exactly sure. It happens suddenly and when you get it, it is in you forever. That means that at any give time it could strike again. Bell's palsy is the most common type of facial paralysis. Every year it happens to over 40,000 people. It can happen to anyone at any age. I decided to do my paper on Bell's palsy because you talked about viruses on our last lecture. When you talked to us about lysogenic pathway Bell's palsy is what came to my mind because it is said to be a virus that stays in one's body and attacks whenever it wants to. So what is Bell's palsy? Bell's palsy is a form facial paralysis. Most of the times it only affects one side of your face but in some rare cases it affects both. Bell's palsy occurs when 7th cranial nerve (facial nerve) starts acting up because “something” irritates it. I say “something” because it is not exactly sure what causes Bell's palsy. Researchers have come to believe that it is sometime type of Herpes simplex virus. The scary thing is that once you get bell's palsy there is always a chance of reoccurance. So you can get it multiple times. The symptoms to bell's palsy are very straightforward. One morning you wake and you basically notice that half or all of your face is partially or completely paralyzed. So symptoms include not being able to blink, not being able to fully contract your facial muscles that includes smiling and facial expressions.
