OBJECTIVE: To estimate the pooled incidence of Bell\'s palsy after COVID-19 vaccination.
METHODS: PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched by 2 independent researchers. We also searched the grey literature including references of the references and conference abstracts. We extracted data regarding the total number of participants, first author, publication year, the country of origin, sex, type of vaccines, and the number of patients who developed Bell\'s palsy after COVID-19 vaccination.
RESULTS: The literature search revealed 370 articles, subsequently deleting duplicates 227 remained. After careful evaluation of the full texts, 20 articles remained for meta-analysis. The most commonly administered vaccines were Pfizer followed by Moderna. In total, 4.54e+07 individuals received vaccines against COVID-19, and 1739 cases developed Bell\'s palsy. In nine studies, controls (individuals without vaccination) were enrolled. The total number of controls was 1 809 069, of whom 203 developed Bell\'s palsy. The incidence of Bell\'s palsy after COVID-19 vaccines was ignorable. The odds of developing Bell\'s palsy after COVID-19 vaccines was 1.02 (95% CI: 0.79-1.32) (I2 = 74.8%, P < .001).
CONCLUSIONS: The results of this systematic review and meta-analysis show that the incidence of peripheral facial palsy after COVID-19 vaccination is ignorable and vaccination does not increase the risk of developing Bell\'s palsy. Maybe, Bell\'s palsy is a presenting symptom of a more severe form of COVID-19, so clinicians must be aware of this.

OBJECTIVE: To identify clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients with peripheral facial palsy (PFP) at a tertiary care hospital.
METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of patients with PFP treated at a tertiary medical center. We gathered demographic data, etiology, laterality, recurrence, recovery, clinical ophthalmology, severity according to the House-Brackmann (HB) scale, electrophysiological tests, medical services attended, medical and surgical treatment.
RESULTS: Two hundred and eighty-three PFP were included, 135 (48%) were men and 148 (52%) were women p = 0.47). All patients had unilateral involvement. The mean age was 54 ± 20 years. The main etiology was idiopathic in 215 (76%) patients. Median recovery time was 7 weeks. Recovery was complete in 190 (67%) patients. One hundred and seventy (84%) patients with idiopathic PFP had complete recovery, versus 30 (16%) patients with non-idiopathic PFP (p < 0.01). The 84% of patients with HB grade II, recovered completely, while with HB grade VI only 17% recovered (p = 0.003). Two hundred and twenty-nine patients (81%) had lagophthalmos. The majority received ocular surface care treatment in 271 (96%) patients and of these 249 (88%) patients received oral corticosteroid therapy. Thirteen patients (5%) required ophthalmologic surgery.
CONCLUSIONS: PFP affects all age ranges, without predilection for sex and unilateral. Its main cause is idiopathic. Recovery is complete in most cases, being more favorable in mild and idiopathic affections. Most only require medical treatment.

Bell\'s palsy is the most common diagnosis associated with facial nerve weakness or paralysis. However, not all patients with facial paresis/paralysis have Bell\'s palsy. Other common causes include treatment of vestibular schwannoma, head and neck tumours, iatrogenic injuries, Herpes zoster, or trauma. The approach to each of these conditions varies widely. The purpose of this guideline is to provide clinicians with guidance on the treatment and monitoring of patients with different causes of facial paralysis. We intend to draft a practical guideline, focusing on operationalised recommendations deemed to be useful in the daily management of patients. This guideline was promoted by the Spanish Society of Otolaryngology and developed by a group of physicians with an interest in facial nerve disorders, including at least one physician from each Autonomous Community. In a question and answer format, it includes 56 relevant topics related to the facial nerve.