While counselling patients on what to expect during the recovery process after facial paralysis is an important part of any clinical visit, FaCE score correlations suggest that female patients with chronic facial palsy and increased age constitute a patient category that may require additional time and attention to prevent or mitigate psychosocial dysfunction.

This study aimed at validating an existing health-related quality of life questionnaire for patients with facial palsy for implementation in the Dutch language and culture. The Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale was translated into the Dutch language using a forward–backward translation method. A pilot test with the translated questionnaire was performed in 10 patients with facial palsy and 10 normal subjects. Finally, cross-cultural adaption was accomplished at our outpatient clinic for facial palsy. Analyses for internal consistency, test–retest reliability, construct validity and responsiveness were performed. Ninety-three patients completed the Dutch Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale, the Dutch Facial Disability Index, and the Dutch Short Form (36) Health Survey. Cronbach’s α, representing internal consistency, was 0.800. Test–retest reliability was shown by an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.737. Correlations with the House–Brackmann score, Sunnybrook score, Facial Disability Index physical function, and social/well-being function were −0.292, 0.570, 0.713, and 0.575, respectively. The SF-36 domains correlate best with the FaCE social function domain, with the strongest correlation between the both social function domains (r = 0.576). The FaCE score did statistically significantly increase in 35 patients receiving botulinum toxin type A (P = 0.042, Student t test). The domains ‘facial comfort’ and ‘social function’ improved statistically significantly as well (P = 0.022 and P = 0.046, respectively, Student t-test). The Dutch Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale shows good psychometric values and can be implemented in the management of Dutch-speaking patients with facial palsy in the Netherlands. Translation of the instrument into other languages may lead to widespread use, making evaluation and comparison possible among different providers.

This study found significant improvement when measuring QoL before and after different treatment modalities in patients with peripheral facial palsy. Future research should focus on patients with PFP due to the same etiology and use of valid QoL instruments for outcome measures. Laryngoscope, 127:1044-1051, 2017.