Angelina Jolie reveals bout with Bell’s palsy: All you need to know about this rare condition and its symptoms

New Delhi: Hollywood actress and humanitarian Angelina Jolie recently revealed in an interview with Vanity Fair that she suffered from Bell's palsy, after her split from Brad Pitt.

The mother of six said that the condition caused one side of her face to droop. She even turned to acupuncture to get relief from Bell's palsy and since then she has made a full recovery.

Here are a few things which you need to know about this rare condition:

• Bell's palsy is characterised by muscle weakness that causes one side of the face to droop.
• It is the most common cause of facial paralysis.
• The condition may be a reaction to a viral infection and rarely occurs more than once.
• It can also affect the sufferer's sensitivity to noise and affect their taste buds. 
• Bell’s palsy can also affect the eyelid and mouth, and in rare cases can affect both sides of a person’s face.
• The rare condition affects around one in 5,000 people annually and most common among children under the age of 15 and adults over the age of 60. 
• Though the exact cause of the condition is unkown, but it can be caused by a stroke, injury to the facial nerve in an accident or injury from surgery.
• Pregnant women, diabetics and people with the flu are at high risk of developing this rare condition.
• The treatment of Bell's palsy may vary based on the severity of symptoms.
• It usually take upto nine months to recover from the condition.
• Physiotherapy can also help prevent muscles from permanently contracting.

The symptoms of the condition can vary from partial palsy, mild muscle weakness or complete palsy. They are:

• Weakness in one side of the face
• Earache of pain in the eye
•  An altered sense of taste
• Drooling or dryness of the mouth
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Difficulty eating or drinking
• Impaired speech