Association of diabetes mellitus and hypertension with Bell's palsy and Ramsay Hunt syndrome.

This study included 625 patients with Bell's palsy and 124 patients with Ramsay Hunt syndrome. Seven percent of the cases of Bell's palsy and 1.6% of the cases of Ramsay Hunt syndrome were associated with diabetes mellitus, while 14.1% of the cases of Bell's palsy and 10.4% of the cases of Ramsay Hunt syndrome were associated with hypertension. In the patients over 40 years of age, rates of association with diabetes and hypertension were 11.2% and 23.0% in Bell's palsy and 1.3% and 10.4% in Ramsay Hunt syndrome, respectively. The rates of diabetes and hypertension in association with Bell's palsy were significantly high compared with those of the general population.