Efficacy of electrotherapy in Bell's palsy treatment: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND

Up to now there is not enough evidence that supports the use of electrotherapy in the treatment of Bell's palsy.

OBJECTIVE

Through a systematic review, we aimed to verify whether the use of electrotherapy is effective for treating Bell's palsy or peripheral paralysis.

METHODS

Publications were searched in PubMed, EBSCO and Web of Science. The present systematic review included studies that analyzed the electrotherapy as a therapeutic method for treating individuals with Bell's palsy, in order to recover the function of facial muscles.

RESULTS

Seven studies involving a total of 131 cases and 113 controls were included in this systematic review. In the studies analyzed, patients received electrotherapy combined with other treatments such as hot-wet facial napkins, massages and muscle reeducation. Although the effect of electrotherapy alone was not evaluated, the use of electrotherapy combined with other treatments produced a significant improvement in the individuals evaluated.

CONCLUSIONS

Due to the diverse methodologies used and the small number of individuals included in the studies, we could not fully prove the efficacy of electrotherapy for treating Bell's Palsy. Future studies with larger samples and homogenous populations should be performed to obtain conclusive results.