House-Brackmann Scale

The House-Brackmann Scale is a clinical grading system used to assess the degree of facial nerve dysfunction in facial palsy. It ranges from Grade I (normal function) to Grade VI (total paralysis), evaluating voluntary movement of the forehead, eye closure, and mouth. While widely used in clinical settings, the scale focuses on physiological function rather than communication ability, meaning patients with similar grades may have different speech comprehensibility. This distinction is important for accessibility assessment, as communication-focused measures may better predict success with speech-based assistive technologies.