VOLITIONAL TYPE OF FACIAL PALSY ASSOCIATED WITH PONTINE ISCHEMIA

A dissociation between voluntary and emotional facial innervation is d escribed in a patient with a pure motor stroke due to a unilateral isc haemic pontine infarction. Voluntary facial innervation of the contral ateral orbicularis oris muscle was affected whereas emotionally induce d innervation of the same muscle was spared. This report provides evid ence that fibres conveying voluntary and emotional commands are still separated in the pens. Whereas corticobulbar tracts carry the informat ion for voluntary facial innervation, efferents from the amygdala and the lateral hypothalamus are candidates for the somatomotor aspects of emotions.