Trigeminal Neuralgia: A Condition that Causes More Pain than any Other Condition

Trigeminal Neuralgia is a pain like no other pain that a person can suffer from. A person will feel lightning strikes of facial pain near the nose, ears, lips, and eyes, upper jaw, lower jaw, scalp, cheek, and forehead. This is a disorder in the fifth cranial nerve. This causes intense shock like pain. This pain has been known to be so severe in patients, that many have actually committed suicide. This disorder often affects one side of the face, although, it has been known to give patients pain at different times on both sides of the face. Simple things can trigger an attack like applying make-up, wind hitting your face, or brushing your teeth. It can be very painful even by a soft touch to your face. Although, not fatal, this is considered the most painful affliction known in the medical practice.

Symptoms of TN: A person will experience electric shock-like pain in the face, or stabbing pain. This pain can last for up to two minutes and can occur up to 100 times a day. This pain is felt in the forehead, ears, lips, nose, eyes, cheek, and scalp. Doing simple daily task can bring on these symptoms. Chewing can even trigger a burst of excruciating pain.

Test and diagnosis: There is no specific test to identify Trigeminal Neuralgia. By explaining your symptoms to your doctor, it makes the diagnosis simple. Although your doctor will have to rule out all other possible causes for your facial pain.

Treatment for TN: To treat TN the first medication your doctor may prescribe is anticonvulsants. This medication stabilizes nerve membranes. Anticonvulsant Carbamazepine is often the doctor's first choice of medication. This medication may not work or may give a patient intolerable side effect. If this occurs, your doctor will prescribe Phenytoin or Valproate.

Causes of TN: The cause for Trigeminal Neuralgia is unknown in most cases. The most common known cause is an abnormally positioned artery. This allows the artery to compress the Trigeminal nerve where it exists the brain. Occasionally younger people who have Multiple Sclerosis may have a risk of getting TN due to nerve damage. Although, rare, some people have been diagnosed with TN due to herpes zoster or even compression due to a tumor.

If you are a person experiencing these symptoms mentioned above, you may want to make an appointment with your family doctor. Ask your doctor if the symptoms you are having may be associated with Trigeminal Neuralgia. Chances are if you have TN you will know it due to the pain being so severe, you will not be able to bare it.