Bell's Palsy is sometimes associated with which type of infection?

• A. Bacterial infection
• B. Viral infection
• C. Fungal infection
• D. Parasitic infection

Answer: (B)

Bell's palsy is most often tied to a viral illness that inflames the facial nerve. The facial nerve travels through a tight bony canal, so inflammation from a viral infection—most commonly reactivation of herpes viruses like herpes simplex—causes swelling and compression that lead to sudden weakness on one side of the face. While the condition can be idiopathic, when an infection is involved, a viral cause fits best because many cases follow or resemble a viral illness, and other infection types (bacterial, fungal, parasitic) are not typically linked to this specific nerve inflammation.