Bell’s Palsy Post COVID-19 Vaccination: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study in a Single Tertiary Center

Introduction: Bell’s palsy is an uncommon adverse effect of the COVID-19 vaccine that has been reported in clinical trials. Even though a few studies have linked the vaccination to Bell’s palsy, the actual mechanism is uncertain. Objectives: To describe the demographic data and COVID-19 vaccines-related data with Bell’s palsy in a tertiary centre of Malaysia, Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was observed among vaccinated recipients who developed Bell’s palsy within 60 days and sought treatment in the Otorhinolaryngology Department Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia between 1st May 2021 and 30th November 2021. The demographic data, clinical history, and vaccination history were collected from clinical records. The facial paralysis was graded according to the House-Brackmann grading system. Results: A total of 26 patients with a mean age was 38.5 years; higher incidence in younger age, below 60 years old (n = 24), specifically 18 - 30 years old (n = 11). We observed an equal number in relation to gender and onset (after the first or second dose) of facial palsy. Predominantly were Malay (n = 21) and only 6 patients had comorbidities. We found there was no difference in regard to the type of vaccine among Bell’s palsy patients; Pfizer (n = 9), followed by Sinovac (n = 9) and AstraZeneca (n = 8). Conclusion: Bell’s palsy was found to be a possible adverse event of the COVID-19 vaccine. Younger groups were noted as susceptible to this rare adverse effect. However, the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risk of Bell’s palsy, which has a good prognosis. More research with larger samples is needed to determine the true relationship between vaccination and Bell’s palsy.