Aesthetic Rehabilitation of Patients with Central and Peripheral Facial Palsy with Injectables (BNT-A, HA-Fillers and CaHa)
<b>Background:</b> Facial palsy constitutes a profoundly disabling condition, often leading to marked functional deficits and a decline in facial appearance, which substantially reduces the patient's quality of life. A combined therapy of botulinum toxin (BoNTA), hyaluronic acid (HA) and calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) appears promising in the pharmacological approach of these patients. <b>Methods:</b> We reported our single center experience of patients with facial palsy, either of central or peripheral etiology who were treated with the combination of BoNTA, HA and CaHA, during a 6-month period (January 2025-June 2025). <b>Results:</b> Eight consecutive adult patients [mean age: 49.50 ± 7.95 years, 6 (75%) female] with facial palsy, either of central (4 patients) or peripheral (4 patients) etiology, received the combination of BoNTA, HA and CaHA. No serious adverse reactions were documented. Localized bruising and swelling at injection sites resolved without requiring any additional intervention. Facial Disability Index (FDI) was assessed both prior to and following treatment. The functional subscale increased from 65.63 ± 16.13 to 80.63 ± 10.50 (improvement rate = 24.4%, <i>p</i>-value = 0.002), while the psychosocial subscale increased from 63.00 ± 17.34 to 74.50 ± 10.89 (improvement rate = 18.3%, <i>p</i>-value = 0.004). Consequently, the total FDI score improved from 128.63 ± 28.92 to 155.13 ± 17.96 (overall improvement = 20.6%, <i>p</i>-value = 0.001). <b>Conclusions:</b> The present case series underscores the potential therapeutic role of CaHA as an adjunct to BoNTA and HA injections in patients with central or peripheral facial palsy.
Authors
- Christina Zompola (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5246-3870)
- Georgios K. Tsivgoulis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0640-3797)
- Georgia Papagiannopoulou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0052-5678)
- Georgios Galatas
- Pinelopi Vlotinou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8828-9093)
- Athanasios Tsivgoulis
- Eleftherios Stefas
- Stella Fanouraki (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-3496-7543)
- Maria-Ioanna Stefanou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0837-9313)
- A. Theodorou
Institutions
- Democritus University of Thrace (GR)
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (GR)
- Sismanoglio General Hospital (GR)
- University of West Attica (GR)
- Athens Medical Center (GR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Clinical Medicine
- Published
- 2026-01-05
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm15010388
- Primary Topic
- Facial Nerve Paralysis Treatment and Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00