ArticleJournal of neurology2008
Bell's palsy: combined treatment of famciclovir and prednisone is superior to prednisone alone.
Article in Journal of neurology, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 14 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effectiveness comparisons of antiviral treatments for Bell palsy: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Journal of neurology · 2022Pooled it
- Antiviral treatment for Bell's palsy (idiopathic facial paralysis).The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019Pooled it
- The benefits of steroids versus steroids plus antivirals for treatment of Bell's palsy: a meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2009Pooled it
- Efficacy of Combination and Single Therapy in Bell's Palsy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.World journal of plastic surgery · 2025Review
- Optimal Bell's Palsy Treatment: Steroids, Antivirals, and a Timely and Personalized Approach.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
- Efficacy of 1064 nm Photobiomodulation Dosimetry Delivered with a Collimated Flat-Top Handpiece in the Management of Peripheral Facial Paralysis in Patients Unresponsive to Standard Treatment Care: A Case Series.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
- Comparison of Medical and Surgical Treatment in Severe Bell's Palsy.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Article
- Comparison of acyclovir and famciclovir for the treatment of Bell's palsy.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2016Article
- Advances in diagnosis and non-surgical treatment of Bell's palsy.Journal of otology · 2015Article
- Steroid-antivirals treatment versus steroids alone for the treatment of Bell's palsy: a meta-analysis.International journal of clinical and experimental medicine · 2015Article
- Peripheral neuropathies: corticosteroids and antivirals in Bell palsy.Nature reviews. Neurology · 2013Article
- Article
- Neuro-ophthalmologic complications and manifestations of upper and lower motor neuron facial paresis.Current neurology and neuroscience reports · 2010Review
- Steroids plus antiviral agents are more effective than steroids alone in the treatment of severe Bell's palsy patients over 40 years of age.International journal of immunopathology and pharmacologyArticle
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issuedKaabar, Pavlina [added]
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
There is insufficient evidence concerning the efficacy of antiviral treatment of Bell's palsy (BP). We therefore compared the efficacy of prednisone and famciclovir to prednisone treatment alone in BP. A total of 167 consecutive patients with untreated acute BP were included. Severity of BP was evaluated using the House-Brackmann scale (HBS) and virus antibody tests (herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus) were performed. Patients admitted on even dates were treated with prednisone ("P group") and patients admitted on odd dates were treated with prednisone and famciclovir ("P+F group"). 117 patients completed the follow-up after 3 months or later (67 P/51 P+F). While most patients showed at least partial recovery with both treatment types, improvement of at least 4 grades in the HBS was more common in the "P+F group" (29.4 % vs. 11.9 %), whereas smaller changes of less than 3 grades were more common in the "P group" (29.9 % vs. 17.6 %; Chi-square test, p = 0.02). Patients with complete BP (HBS grade of 5 or 6) had significantly better chances of reaching normal function if treated with famciclovir additionally instead with prednisone alone (73.7 % vs. 47.1 %; Cochran-Armitage trend test, p = 0.03). These results suggest that the combined treatment of famciclovir and prednisolone should be considered (at least) in patients with severe BP.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.