NYU Langone Health launched its new Facial Paralysis and Reanimation Center, which will specialize in facial paralysis treatment and research, earlier this month. Jeffrey Markey, instructor in the Department of Otolaryngology at Langone, will lead the Facial Paralysis and Reanimation Center as its director.

Along with Markey, an experienced group of physicians, surgeons, therapists and administrators were introduced in order to fulfill the complex needs of patients with facial paralysis.  

“Facial paralysis — whether a result of Bell’s Palsy, or head trauma, or a stroke or following the removal of an intracranial tumor — affects thousands of New Yorkers every year,” Markey said. “To best treat a complicated problem like facial paralysis, it requires a group of physicians, surgeons and therapists that are able to work together to provide a customized, cutting-edge treatment for each patient.”

Markey said that people who suffer from facial paralysis can face a slew of problems such as difficulty closing their eyes, vision loss, trouble swallowing and breathing issues, all of which can significantly reduce their quality of life.

“Facial paralysis has a profound effect on a patient’s quality of life; this is true both fundamentally and aesthetically,” Markey said. “All these problems, as you can imagine, are very distressing for patients.”

In addition to the medical conditions patients with facial paralysis suffer from, many facial paralysis patients face other life altering effects.

“Aesthetically, patients with facial paralysis can’t express emotion as they did before,” Markey said. “Many patients describe an aversion to looking in the mirror or taking pictures.”

In creating the facial Paralysis and Reanimation Center, Langone aspires to provide the best facial paralysis treatment in the region and conduct research into new treatments and diagnostic methods of facial paralysis. The center includes specialties such as otolaryngology, plastic surgery, ophthalmology, neurology and rehabilitation medicine.

“The most important part of creating this center is getting all those physicians, therapists and administrators invested in achieving the same goal,” Markey said. “Opening this center involved encouraging these multidisciplinary professionals to join with the center to provide the best, evidence driven, cutting-edge care for patients with facial paralysis.”

Email Alesha Bradford at [email protected].