Delayed facial paralysis?

[Kell]

Hi everyone .... I am new to posting but not new to searching this site for great information! I had surgery via retrosigmoid approach for what was thought to be medium sized left sided acoustic neuroma by MRI but was actually meningioma on June 17 at Duke by Drs Friedman and Fukushima. Surgery went great and I went home  to Greenville on June 19. Everything has been smooth since I have been home .... Husband and family have been great and I have felt great walking daily, no pain medicine since Saturday and going out to lunch and groceries with friends. Sooooooo, this morning I noticed some numbness and weakness to the right side of my mouth when blotting my chapstk and then noticed unevenness when "squinching" up my nose ( rightside weaker) and smile slightly weaker on the right .  Has anyone experienced this? I do plan to call the office in the morning but thought I would check here for information as well. Thank you so much for your time.

[HeidiC]

Welcome to the group!  It is nice to see a fellow North Carolinian.   Sorry you had to find us though, it sucks that we all have to have tumors to meet eachother!  I don't really have any info that will help you, but I am sure others will chime in here soon.

I am in Fayetteville and have a consultation at UNC with Dr. Adunka on Aug 2nd.

[Jim Scott]

Hi Kell - and welcome ~

Congratulations on a successful AN surgery!  Delayed, post-operative facial weakness is not uncommon in AN surgical patients.  I underwent a very successful AN debulking surgery but, two weeks post-op, upon close examination, my neurosurgeon said he could detect a miniscule difference from the right side and the left (AN) side of my face, that is wasn't 100% symmetrical.  I asked him how symmetrical he thought it was and he replied "95%".  I recall saying "I'll take it!" - and we both laughed.  Even now, 5 years post-op, I can notice a v-e-r-y slight difference on the left side of my face and it is just slightly less sensitive to the touch than the other side.  This is not an issue (I can shave with absolutely no problem) and is not at all noticeable.  My point is that it's rare to not have even the slightest change in facial mobility post-op.  So, your onset of facial weakness may be a bit disturbing (checking with your doctor is prudent) but my guess - I'm not a doctor - is that this will pass or, at the worst, not progress or become an issue.  Please keep us updated.  Thanks.

Jim   

[CHD63]

Hi Kell .....

Welcome to this forum.  Glad you posted about your experience.

I had translab surgery two months ago at HEI and experienced a very tiny bit of facial weakness at about a week post-op (big grin not symmetrical).  I also had some altered taste.  It gradually has abated and is essentially gone now.  The explanation was the very normal swelling post-op, which gradually subsided.

Many thoughts and prayers that it will go away soon and all will be well.

Clarice

[Twindad]

I have had the same type of effect since my surgery last month. It seems to come and go. One of my surgeons told me the nerves are reorienting themselves to the trauma and they should settle down to more of a per manant state in three to six months. I wish you well in your recovery. These people have been great to communicate with on this forum !

[Dan]

Hello Kell,  I had retrosigmoid surgery 4 years ago, 5 days after surgery in the evening I had slight numbness and facial weakness.  The next morning I woke up and had no facial movement, OP side.  The Dr. said it was probably post OP swelling, pressing on the facial nerve and that I should have full recovery.  It took almost 3 months until I could close my eye again but now 4 years later I rarely notice and difference.

Dan in Germany   

[mk]

My understanding is that it is not uncommon to have delayed facial paralysis, although usually it happens after a few days post-op, as Dan mentioned. Usually the prognosis for this is very good, because it is due to some temporary swelling and not permanent nerve damage.

I have experienced something similar as you, not with the facial nerve, but with the trigeminal nerve. I had facial numbness before the surgery, because my trigeminal nerve was impacted by the AN. This resolved after surgery. However the numbness suddenly returned 6 weeks post op. As you mentioned I started feeling it first around my lips, but then it propagated throughout the right side of my face. My surgeon said that some fluctuations in the nerves are not uncommon. Hopefully our symptoms will resolve soon.

Marianna

[JAndrews]

Mine was also a meninigioma. I had the translab approach. About 3 weeks post- op half my face was paralyzed. It went away slowly over a period of about 2 weeks. But call your doctor to be on the safe side.