Facial Nerve Grading System 2.0

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To present an updated version of the original Facial Nerve Grading Scale (FNGS), commonly referred to as the House-Brackmann scale. STUDY DESIGN: Controlled trial of grading systems using a series of 21 videos of individuals with varying degrees of facial paralysis. RESULTS: The intraobserver and interobserver agreement was high among the original and revised scales. Nominal improvement is seen in percentage of exact agreement of grade and reduction of instances of examiners differing by more then one grade when using FNGS 2.0. FNGS 2.0 also offers improved agreement in differentiating between grades 3 and 4. CONCLUSION: FNGS 2.0 incorporates regional scoring of facial movement, providing additional information while maintaining agreement comparable to the original scale. Ambiguities regarding use of the grading scale are addressed.