The music star admitted that he was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome, losing movement in his right side of the face.
Source: Evan Agostini / Invision
Justin Bieber revealed on Instagram on Friday that he contracted a viral infection causing half his face to be paralyzed.
He also informed his supporters that he must cancel a number of shows due to the infection, until his right half of the face regains movement.
As you can probably see from my face, I have this syndrome called Ramsay Hunt syndrome,” Bieber states in the clip. “As you can see, this eye is not blinking. I can’t smile on this side of my face. This nostril will not move, so there’s full paralysis on this side of my face.”
In his video to supporters, Bieber attempts to smile, blink, and move his face, but one side of his face remains frozen while he speaks.
“So for those who are frustrated by my cancellations of the next shows, I’m just physically, obviously not able of doing them,” he says. “This is pretty serious as you can see.”
Source: Instagram: @justinbieber
Bieber claims he’s been conducting facial exercises to attempt to regain movement in his face, but it’ll take time.
“I wish this wasn’t the case but obviously my body is telling me I gotta slow down,” he says. “I hope you guys understand, and I’m using this time to just rest and relax and get back to 100% so I can do what I was born to do. But in the meantime, this ain’t it.”
According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, the virus that causes Ramsay Hunt syndrome is varicella-zoster virus, which belongs to the herpes virus family. It’s the same pathogen that causes chickenpox in children and shingles in adults.
The reason Bieber caught the virus remains unknown, but it’s most likely he caught it during a bout with chickenpox a couple of years ago.
Source: Instagram: @justinbieber
It’s unclear how Bieber contracted the virus, but it’s possible he may have contracted the germ several years ago during a bout with chickenpox. The virus, which is not contagious, can lay dormant in your body for years before reactivating and migrating to a facial nerve behind your ear, causing shingles or, in some circumstances, Ramsay Hunt syndrome, for mysterious reasons.
People with RHS commonly have facial paralysis or weakness on one side of the face, as well as a rash on the outer part of the ear, though neither symptom is assured, as it was in Bieber’s case.
Ringing in the ears, transient hearing loss, nausea, vomiting, dry eyes, ear pain, and loss of taste are some other possible signs of RHS.
According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, the syndrome affects roughly 5 out of every 100,000 persons in the United States each year, while its frequency may be underestimated since cases are frequently misdiagnosed.
RHS can affect anyone who has had chickenpox at some point in their lives, most commonly in adulthood. The majority of instances affect older persons; while children are less likely to be impacted.
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RHS can be treated using antiviral drugs like acyclovir or famciclovir, which are both used to treat herpes virus infections, as well as corticosteroids. However, some symptoms, such as facial paralysis and hearing loss, may become permanent. If someone can’t blink, as Bieber can’t, eye drops can help preserve the cornea from drying out. He added in his message that he didn’t know how long it would take for him to get better.
“It’s going to be OK,” Bieber says. “I hope, and I trust God and I trust that this is all going to, it’s all for a reason.”
