Facial paralysis

I am a nurse and have been in the medical field for years.  I have worked in the emergency room, on 911 ambulance and have seen a quite a bit in this line of work.  My question is this:  I recently met a young woman that was in a horrible car accident.  Her injuries were very severe to her entire body but her face had the blunt of it all.  After many years and one surgery to repair her damages (which I have to give praise to that surgeon) there is still paralysis to the right side of her face.  She had mentioned that in therapy they had placed a "tins unit" to try out the nerve damage to her face and it had actually helped.  I have never heard of doing this but I dont see why it wouldnt work.  Would it be possible after years of having this paralysis that this woman could try the tins unit again and possible regain some type of movement to her face?  

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

A Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator, more commonly referred to as a "TENS unit" is an electronic device that produces electrical currents used to stimulate nerves through unbroken skin. The unit is usually connected to the skin using two or more electrodes.

In palliative care and pain medicine, TENS units are used in an attempt to alleviate neuropathic pain.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcutaneous_Electrical_Nerve_Stimulator

TENS has been proposed as a treatment for nerve disorders, such as hemiplegia (paralysis on one side of the body) and spasticity in multiple sclerosis. TENS has also been used to treat nerve pain (neuralgia) resulting from bruxism (teeth grinding) and spinal chord injuries. However, there is not enough evidence that TENS is effective in treating nerve disorders.

So further evaluation should be done by a neurologist to see what the cause of paralysis to the right side of face is, how much damage has been done and what can be done to repair it.

I hope I have provided you with sufficient information. If you need any more, then pls post us.

Take care and regards.

[nhene]

Hello, I am hoping that someone out there might be able to help. I am looking for a doctor in Florida who has done a corrective surgery for facial paraylises. I am having a hard time finding one. I have what's commonly called a bell's pulsy, I've had a facial nerve graft done when I was 19, i am now 31 yrs old and still don't have any movement on the left side of my face. It's been about 12 yrs since my surgery, I am hoping that our technology has gotten better. If anyone who knows of a good doctor, and or who is one, pls drop by a comment. Thanks.