P11.3: Birth injury to facial nerve [7th cranial nerve]
The child’s facial nerve was damaged during the birth.
The facial nerve runs from both sides of the brain to different parts of the head. The nerve does different things. For example, it controls a lot of facial muscles. The nerve is also important for our sense of taste. It also affects our hearing and how much saliva and tears are formed.
There are various reasons for damage to the child’s facial nerve. If there are difficulties with a vaginal birth, a forceps may need to be used. The forceps can be used to grip the child's head from both sides in order to pull the child out of the vagina. The child’s facial nerve can get damaged in the process. The facial nerve can also get damaged if the child is very big or if the birth takes longer than usual.
A damaged facial nerve can cause the face to be unusually contorted when crying. It may also be that the mouth is pulled to the side that is not affected, or that one eye cannot be closed properly.
Additional indicator
On medical documents, the ICD code is often appended by letters that indicate the diagnostic certainty or the affected side of the body.
- G: Confirmed diagnosis
- V: Tentative diagnosis
- Z: Condition after
- A: Excluded diagnosis
- L: Left
- R: Right
- B: Both sides
Further information
Note
This information is not intended for self-diagnosis and does not replace professional medical advice from a doctor. If you find an ICD code on a personal medical document, please also note the additional indicator used for diagnostic confidence.Your doctor will assist you with any health-related questions and explain the ICD diagnosis code to you in a direct consultation if necessary.
Source
Provided by the non-profit organization “Was hab’ ich?” gemeinnützige GmbH on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG).