Bieber tried to smile, blink, and move his face during his video, but as he continued to speak it became clear that one side of his face was immobile.
“So for those who are frustrated that I’m canceling the next show, I’m physically, obviously not being able to do them,” he said. “It’s as serious as you can see.”
Bieber said he has been doing facial exercises to try to regain movement, but it will take time to heal.
“I wish it wasn’t like that, but my body tells me I need to be slow,” he said. “I hope you understand, I’ll use this time to relax and unwind and get 100% back so I can do the birth. But in the meantime, it’s not.”
The virus that causes Ramsay Hunt syndrome is called the varicella-zoster virus, which belongs to the herpes virus family; According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, it is the same pathogen that causes chickenpox in children and singles in adults.
It is not clear how Bieber caught the virus, but he may have been infected several years ago when he fought the chicken box. The The non-infectious virus stays dormant in your body for many years before reactivating And spreads to the facial nerve near your ear, singles or in some cases, develops Ramsay Hunt syndrome, for unknown reasons.
As in the case of Bieber, people with RHS usually experience facial numbness or weakness on one side of the face and rashes on the outside of the ear, although both symptoms are not guaranteed.
Other symptoms that come with RHS include tinnitus, temporary deafness, nausea, vomiting, dry eyes, earache and loss of taste.
The syndrome occurs in 5 out of every 100,000 people in the United States each year, according to the National System for Rare Disorders, although its prevalence can be underestimated as cases are often misdiagnosed.
Anyone affected by chicken pox can develop RHS at some point, often in adulthood. Most cases occur in the elderly; Children are rarely affected.
Antiviral drugs such as azithromycin or famciclovir – both used to treat herpes virus infections – can treat RHS in combination with corticosteroids. However, some symptoms such as facial numbness and deafness may become permanent. Like Piper, which blinks, eye drops help protect the cornea from drying out. In his message, it was unclear how long it would take for him to recover.
“It’s going to be okay,” Bieber said. “I believe, I believe in God, and I believe all of this is happening for a reason.”
“Lifelong social media lover. Falls down a lot. Creator. Devoted food aficionado. Explorer. Typical troublemaker.”