Congenital facial paralysis affects 2.7 per 100,000 children; Bell palsy affects 23 per 100,000 people annually; and even more people are affected when considering all other causes. Conditions that impair facial mimetics impact patients’ social functioning and emotional well-being. Dynamic and static reconstructive methods may be used individually or in concert to achieve adequate blink restoration, smile strength and spontaneity, and lower lip depression. Timing of injury and repair, patient characteristics such as age, and cause of facial paralysis are all considered in selecting the most appropriate reconstructive approach. This article describes evidence-based management of 
facial paralysis.

Faculty
Sofia Aronson, MD; Sarah A. Applebaum, MD; Lauren J. Kelsey, BS; Arun K. Gosain, MD

Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery®Editors:
Editor-in-Chief:Kevin Chung, MD
Co-Editor:Amy Colwell, MD
Section Editors:John Y.S. Kim, MD

Intended Audience
This educational activity is intended for plastic surgery practitioners, residents, and other healthcare professionals interested in translating expanded knowledge into practice for the improvement of patient outcomes in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Learning Objectives
After viewing this course, the participant should be able to:

Disclosure Policy
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) requires all faculty, authors, planners, reviewers, managers, staff and other individuals in a position to control or influence the content of an activity to disclose all relevant financial relationships or affiliations. All identified conflicts of interest must be resolved and the educational content thoroughly vetted by ASPS for fair balance, scientific objectivity and appropriateness of patient care recommendations. The ASPS also requires faculty/authors to disclose when off-label/unapproved uses of a product are discussed in a CME activity or included in related materials.

Disclaimer: All relevant financial relationships for planners, faculty, and others in control of content (either individually or as a group) are reviewed by the ASPS Continuing Education Committee and have been mitigated, if applicable.

The following planners/faculty members/reviewers have no relevant financial relationships or affiliations to disclose:  

Sofia Aronson, MD; Sarah A. Applebaum, MD; Lauren J. Kelsey, BS; Arun K. Gosain, MD

AMA PRA Category 1 Credit^TM: 1.0
Patient Safety Credit: 0.5
Media:Journal Article, Video
Release Date: 9/01/2023
Expiration Date: 9/01/2026
Estimated time to complete this course: 1 hour

*Course access ends on course expiration date