A 38-year-old man presents after his partner noticed that he has started to ‘look funny’ when he smiles. He reports feeling well but admits he has noticed some dribbling when he tries to drink water over the past 24 hours. He was previously fit and well other than experiencing some slight ear discomfort during the previous day. He has moderate facial weakness on the right side with no forehead sparing. The left side is normal. There is no associated hearing loss and no history of trauma.
Given the most likely diagnosis, what would be the first step to manage this patient?
- A) Hypromellose drops
- B) Decompression surgery
- C) No treatment currently indicated
- D) Aciclovir
- E) Prednisolone
ASCENT 