Popis: |
The author presents the analysis of 29 cases of facial palsy collected in Shaba, Zaire (former Katanga, Belgian Congo) between 1984-1988 in the region called Copperbelt. Because to date there has been no work done on these problems in this part of Africa, it would be interesting to present a short report. Patients with facial palsy came to the ENT Department mostly for other reasons, and very late. Only 5 patients came before 3 mos after the onset. The different etiologies were as follows: 2--post traumatic, 7--otogenic, 9--tumors, 4--iatrogenic, 6--Bells palsy, 1--other. The assessment, comparison and the treatment of such cases in an underdeveloped country is very difficult or almost impossible. The small number of cases is insufficient for any conclusions, but the author tried to get some data, which would be a starting point in the future researches. |