Facial palsy: Anatomy, etiology, grading, and surgical treatment

The modern microvascular reconstructive surgeon has quite an arsenal when managing the paralyzed face and injury to the facial nerve. After a brief description of the anatomy, etiology, facial nerve syndromes, and grading schemes, we detail our approach to the patient with facial paralysis. In reviewing our methods, we discuss the organ-based timing protocol, along with recent advancements in surgical technique.