Lyme disease and seventh nerve paralysis in children

Purpose: This study was undertaken to determine the frequency of Lyme disease (LD) as a cause of transient facial nerve palsy (FNP) in children. Acute onset FNP in children has been primarily associated with acute otitis media (AOM). Recently, LID has emerged in regions where the deer-tick vector is...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of otolaryngology 1997-09, Vol.18 (5), p.320-323
Main Authors: Cook, Steven P., Macartney, Kristine K., Rose, Carlos D., Hunt, Patricia G., Eppes, Stephan C., Reilly, James S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Amoxicillin - therapeutic use
Animals
Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Child, Preschool
Doxycycline - therapeutic use
Ear, auditive nerve, cochleovestibular tract, facial nerve: diseases, semeiology
Facial Nerve - physiopathology
Facial Paralysis - etiology
Facial Paralysis - physiopathology
Female
Humans
Lyme Disease - complications
Lyme Disease - diagnosis
Lyme Disease - drug therapy
Male
Medical sciences
Non tumoral diseases
Otorhinolaryngology. Stomatology
Penicillins - therapeutic use
Retrospective Studies
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Summary:Purpose: This study was undertaken to determine the frequency of Lyme disease (LD) as a cause of transient facial nerve palsy (FNP) in children. Acute onset FNP in children has been primarily associated with acute otitis media (AOM). Recently, LID has emerged in regions where the deer-tick vector is present and has been associated with multiple cranial neuropathies. Patients and Methods: Fifty children with transient FNP were evaluated and treated at our institution over a 5.5-year period. Results: The rank of etiologies confirmed LID to now be the most common (50%), followed by AOM (12%), varicella (6%), Herpes zoster (4%), and coxsackievirus (2%). Thirteen children (26%) had idiopathic FNP consistent with Bell's palsy. Conclusion: We conclude that transient FNP in children is most commonly caused by LD for regions with endemic infections caused by Borrelia burgdorferi.
ISSN:0196-0709
1532-818X
DOI:10.1016/S0196-0709(97)90026-0