Facial palsy unit praised for children's party

Sian said the party gave her daughter Mia a confidence boost

Parents have praised a hospital for throwing a party for children with facial palsy.

Oxford University Hospitals - a main centre for the treatment of facial palsy - said many young patients had never met another child with the condition.

The event, at the John Radcliffe Hospital, gave the children an opportunity to talk about their faces and learn how to express themselves if they are unable to smile.

One mother, Sian, said her seven-year-old daughter Mia had been talking about it "non-stop" ever since.

Speech and language therapist Sarah Kilcoyne has been helping Mia learn how to smile again

Mia was five years old when, following an operation to remove a brain tumour, she developed facial paralysis.

Sian said: "She didn't want to look in the mirror. It was quite challenging for her."

Sarah Kilcoyne, principal speech and language therapist at the clinic, said: "Mia's face was completely paralysed on one side. She was unable to close her eye and unable to smile.

"The surgeons took the branch of the facial nerve that helps you lift your cheeks for a smile and they stitched it to the nerve that helps you bite, so if Mia bites her teeth together she can smile on both sides of her face.

"My job has been to do the rehabilitation to help Mia learn how to bite down to help her smile and now she's very proud to do that in photos."

Mia also underwent surgery to put a gold weight in her eye to help her eyelid close.

Ms Kilcoyne said: "Children from all over the country came together to have a party and meet others like them."

Sian said: "She loved it so much, and I am so proud of her. I have never seen the confidence in Mia that I did that day – it was fantastic."

Another mother, Victoria, said her son Jordi had been happy to meet the other children.

"Until now he had felt like he was the only one," she said.