A NEW service for people with facial palsy has launched at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital.

The new clinic brings together different treatments for the condition, a weakness and paralysis of facial muscles caused by nerve damage.

The hospital previously carried out surgery but the clinic – set up on a year-long trial basis – will be able to offer other forms of support.

This will include a new physiotherapy service as well as speech and language therapy plus psychological support. It has been set up thanks to £25,000 from Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust’s charitable funds.

The trust, which runs the hospital, said it means people from across the country will be able to get support in one place.

Procedures include the use of botox on the non-paralysed side of the face to make it more symmetrical for patients with partial facial palsy.

The cash has also paid for specialist biofeedback equipment to detect muscular activity to assess how patients use their facial muscles.

Consultant plastic surgeon David Johnson said: “This will provide state-of-the-art care for a very vulnerable group of patients, who may have felt previously that no help was available.”