WHAT IS TRIGEMINAL NEURALGIA
The sharp facial pain of trigeminal neuralgia (also known as tic douloureux) usually arises from pressure on the trigeminal nerve caused by a blood vessel, usually the superior cerebellar artery.
- Other causes are tumor and multiple sclerosis, injury/damage to a nerve or lack of protective insulation of trigeminal nerve.
- About four in 100,000 people experience trigeminal neuralgia per year, and the condition is most common in males.
Symptoms
- Symptoms consist of intermittent shooting pain on one side of the face emanating from one or more branches of the trigeminal nerve.
- Symptoms, which last a few seconds, may be set off by chewing, swallowing, talking or other sensory stimulation the face.
Diagnosis
- Medical history and physical examination are key to diagnosing trigeminal neuralgia. The history should determine the following:
- An accurate description of pain localization to determine which divisions of trigeminal nerve are affected
- Determine the time of onset and what triggers the pain
- Determine what medications and dosages of medication have been tried
- Determine history of herpetic vesicles
- A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain is used to rule out the possibility of tumor.