Yes, but not everyone is suitable. Facial paralysis has good therapeutic effects with traditional Chinese medicine. Facial paralysis is generally treated with acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine. The difficulty of acupuncture lies in the manipulation and acupoint selection
The main acupoints are: Hegu, Taichong, Qianzheng, Jieche, Dicang, and Xia. Guan, Yingxiang, Chengjiang
Additional and subtractive method: If the eyelids cannot close down, and the eyes are open and weeping, add Cuanzhu, Yuyao, Silk and Bamboo Kong, Yangbai. For those with pain behind the ears, add Yifeng. For those with loss of taste, add Lianquan.
For facial paralysis caused by wind-cold, add Fengchi to the main points on the face during acupuncture to dispel wind and disperse cold and wind-heat facial paralysis. During acupuncture, the main points on the face are added to Quchi to relieve wind and heat; for facial paralysis due to insufficient Qi and blood, the main points on the face are added to Zusanli, Qihai, and Guanyuan to replenish qi and activate blood circulation.
But not every disease stage and not everyone is suitable for acupuncture. The risks of acupuncture treatment for facial paralysis are as follows:
The facial nerve is intricate and a little careless can cause secondary damage to the facial nerve. The sequelae of facial paralysis in some patients may be caused by improper acupuncture.
In the acute stage, acupuncture treatment for facial paralysis can easily damage the facial nerve or cause local edema, which may also be a factor in sequelae. Patients with severe facial paralysis are also not suitable for acupuncture. In addition, long-term acupuncture stimulation can damage the facial nerve, and some facial dendritic nerves are completely ruptured. Facial edema may also occur, and the recurrence rate is high after cure. Pregnant women, those with bleeding disorders, diabetes, skin infections, serious organ diseases, and those with low immunity must also be cautious.
Acupuncture can indeed bring good news to many patients with facial paralysis, but it must also be treated based on syndrome differentiation.