Background: Facial nerve paralysis (FP) is a possible complication of cerebellopontine angle tumor surgery. Several donor nerves have been used in the past for facial reanimation. We report the results of 30 cases of masseter-to-facial anastomosis.
Objective: To prospectively evaluate the efficacy of V to VII anastomosis after FP.
Methods: In a prospective study, we included 30 consecutive patients with FP (20 women and 10 men) whose mean age was 48.8 yr (32-76 yr). In almost all cases, FP developed after cerebellopontine angle tumor surgery (29 patients), whereas in one case, FP occurred after skull base trauma. Pre- and postoperative evaluation of facial nerve function was performed using the House-Brackmann (HB) scale and the Sokolovsky scale, as well as by electromyography. Follow-up ranged from 11 to 51 mo and averaged 22 mo.
Results: All patients achieved functional recovery of the facial nerve from VI to either III or IV HB degree. Patients with short time FP showed significantly better postoperative recovery.
Conclusion: The results of the V to VII anastomosis demonstrate a significant improvement of facial nerve function and virtually no complications.
Keywords: Anastomosis; Facial nerve; Facial nerve palsy; House-Brackmann scale; Masseter nerve; Masseter-to-facial anastomosis.
Copyright © 2020 by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.