Bridging TCM and Biomedicine Intervention Strategies for Recovery of Idiopathic Facial Palsy: A Case Report

This single-patient case report describes a 70-year-old woman who presented with sudden right-sided facial paralysis (House–Brackmann [HB] grade V–VI) at the Integrated Medicine Clinic, Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Rehabilitation and Occupational Diseases. She also presented with comorbid type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, coronary artery disease, mixed hyperlipidaemia and hyperuricaemia. The patient was treated with a short course of oral methylprednisolone and neuronutrients, 30 days of Bu Yang Huan Wu Tang (Tonify the Yang to Restore Five [-Tenths] Decoction), electroacupuncture using an electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) device, warm acupuncture with moxibustion, home facial muscle rehabilitation and one session of thread-embedding during a holiday interruption. Primary outcomes were the House-Brackmann grading scale, Facial Clinimetric Evaluation (FaCE) score and a patient satisfaction Likert scale. By day 30, House-Brackmann was grade I across domains, FaCE score improved from 21 at baseline to 70, and patient satisfaction in treatment was rated at 4.5 out of 5. No adverse events occurred. In this high-risk older adult, a carefully dosed steroid regimen integrated with EMS-assisted electroacupuncture, moxibustion, targeted herbal therapy and structured rehabilitation was associated with full recovery by 30 days. This protocol may be considered when early response to standard care is suboptimal.