There are a lot of chronic pain disorders and one of them is trigeminal neuralgia. It is known as tic douloureux, a type of chronic pain disorder, involving sudden attacks of extreme facial pain. Facial pain affects the trigeminal nerve of the fifth cranial nerve, which provides feeling and nerve signals to parts of the face and head. Trigeminal neuralgia happens spontaneously but is sometimes associated with dental procedures or facial trauma.
The condition is caused by blood vessels pressing against the trigeminal nerve known as vascular compression. Attacks may start mild and short. But, if it is left untreated, trigeminal neuralgia may progressively worsen. So, early intervention not to worsen the condition is to get trigeminal neuralgia treatment.
What are the early signs of trigeminal neuralgia?
A flare-up of facial pain begins with numbness or tingling in the face. The pain occurs in intermittent bursts, which lasts anywhere from seconds to 2 minutes. It becomes more and more frequent until the pain is continuous.
The facial pain usually starts when the compression is caused by the nearby blood vessel that presses on part of the nerve in the skull. The trigeminal neuralgia happens when the trigeminal nerve becomes damaged with another medical condition, such as:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS)
- Tumour
Stage 1 trigeminal neuralgia
TN1 is characterized by the following:
- intensely sharp
- throbbing
- sporadic
- burning or shock-like pain
These occur around the different parts of the face, such as:
- eyes
- lips
- nose
- jaw
- forehead
- scalp
TN1 gets worse which results in more pain that lasts longer. TN2 is present as constant, burning, and then aching feeling with stabbing, less intense than the TN1
Is trigeminal neuralgia condition curable?
Many have claimed trigeminal neuralgia can’t always be cured, yet there are treatments available that can alleviate the debilitating pain. For the condition to keep on the point that it is no longer curable, it is best to look for an early cure.
Trigeminal neuralgia treatment
Trigeminal neuralgia therapy uses the same medicines prescribed to control seizures including:
- carbamazepine
- gabapentin
- similar agents
A regular blood test is required for medications, to check the following:
- white blood cell count
- platelets
- sodium levels
- liver function
An early intervention of trigeminal neuralgia helps lessen the pain and can also be treated. But, if you simply ignore it because the pain just disappears, don’t be too confident. Facial pain might occur again, and this time, the pain gets worse and can be uncurable.
