Treatment for Facial Paralysis at CenterIMT Facial Rehabilitation Clinics is composed of three primary tools.
1. Integrative Manual Therapy for Treatment of Facial Paralysis and Facial Nerve Dysfunctions
2. Integrative Manual Therapy Home Program For Recovery From Facial Paralysis
3. Computerized Facial Muscle Stimulation
1. Integrative Manual Therapy for Treatment of Facial Paralysis and Facial Nerve Dysfunctions
Integrated Systems Approach Facial paralysis is a problem involving multiple systems of the body. Therefore, IMT for facial rehabilitation uses the Integrated Systems Approach to address:
a. the vascular system (arteries and veins that affect the head, face, eyes, and neck),
b. the nervous system (facial nerve, trigeminal nerve, other nerves of the head, neck, eyes and face),
c. the osseous system (bones of the face, orbit and head),
d. the lymphatic system (lymph nodes and lymph vessels of the head, face, and neck),
e. the musculoskeletal system (muscles and joints of the head, face, eyes, neck and jaw),
f. emotional and mental aspects of facial paralysis that affect one's quality of life.
All of these systems and more affect one's recovery from facial paralysis. Integrative Manual Therapy™ addresses each involved system and its relationship to the whole to achieve optimal healing and recovery from facial paralysis.
Integrative Manual Therapy (IMT) Techniques
All of the above systems are addressed using hundreds of proprietary hands-on IMT techniques. These techniques affect specific structures (e.g. the facial nerve, obicularis oculi muscle, or zygoma bone). They facilitate healing on a cellular level and encourage tissue repair. IMT techniques are administered during weekly treatment sessions by a physical or occupational therapist who is also a certified Integrative Manual Therapist (I.M.T.C.). Patients receive one-on-one hands-on attention. This work is highly specialized and impossible to administer in a group or parallel-therapy setting.
Neuromuscular Re-education
Neuromuscular re-education is customized for each patient's specific needs. Some patients need increased bulking and improved tone of facial muscle. Others require neuromuscular retraining to change synkinesis or involuntary facial muscle contractions. Many patients require both bulking in parts of their face and an inhibition of tightness or contraction in other parts of their face. Neuromuscular re-education is provided during therapy sessions and is an integral part of each patient's home program.
2. Integrative Manual Therapy Home Program For Recovery From Facial Paralysis
Most IMT techniques must be administered by highly trained hands. However, there are many IMT hands-on techniques that can be administered at home by the patient to further healing. This homework is an integral part of each patient’s home program for recovery from facial paralysis. Patients who are dedicated to their IMT “homework” achieve faster and more comprehensive results. This is clinically proven again and again.
Each patient’s home program is customized to meet their needs though typical home programs will include exercises and IMT techniques such as:
Neurofascial Process:
Neurofascial Process (NFP) is a hands-on technique that stimulates the body’s innate ability to be self-corrective. It directly affects specific tissues using reflexes that naturally occur in each persons’ body. When used at home, NFP has proven to decrease facial edema, pain, muscle spasm, soft tissue restrictions and more. The detailed nature of this technique can be found in the book Body Wisdom (Weiselfish-Giammatteo 2002).
IMT Neuromuscular Re-education:
Unique functional exercises developed by Sharon Giammatteo, help change the structure and function of the face, eyes, head and neck.
Biofeedback Exercises To Correct Synkinesis:
This four phase program helps decrease or eliminate involuntary movements of the eyes, mouth, chin, and neck.
Synchronizer Therapy:
This group of exercises facilitates support from natural reflexes called Syncronizers. These techniques can help improve the health of facial muscle and all tissues of the face. A synchronizer is a reflex point with a specific purpose. For example, a muscle synchronizer would help normalize the function of facial muscles.
Exercises To Eliminate Soft Tissue Restrictions:
These exercises are administered by the patient multiple times a day to improve flexibility of the face and facial symmetry.
3. Computerized Facial Muscle Stimulation
The CenterIMT facial rehabilitation program incorporates the use of a unique electrical stimulation that works at a sub-contraction level. The patient does not feel the stimulus to the muscle and wears the stimulator while sleeping. This is the only electrical stimulation program developed specifically for facial muscles based on motor unit action potentials of healthy facial muscle.
