Cures for facial pain
We are identified by our face. Face is the most visible portal for communicating with the rest of the world, exhibiting emotions, desires and coordinating special senses such as vision, hearing, smell and taste.
Face is the reflection of one’s personality and has major role in non-verbal communication by an individual. There are certain problems that are specific to the face that require precise neurosurgical evaluation and intervention.
The common conditions of the face include sinusitis and dental problems, where the pain is more localised, dull and relieved with common medication for pain.
One half of face (generally the jaw area or the area of the cheek and below the eye) can has spells of intermittent episodes of severe, sharp lancinating pain. Known as trigeminal neuralgia, the pain usually affects one side in adults and in the elderly.
A number of prominent historical figures have suffered this malady. All too often, the patient makes multiple trips to the dentist, thinking it to be a dental problem and undergoes multiple dental extractions or root canal treatment.
Trigeminal neuralgia is often precipitated by brushing teeth, chewing food on the affected site and even by touching the area of the face involved. The underlying cause is pressure on the nerve conveying sensations from the face (trigeminal nerve), by an abnormal loop of blood vessel (generally an artery), and the problem is seen more often in the elderly.
Patient is progressively distressed with poor oral hygiene and may become a social recluse, malnourished. Such patients are often malnourished due to fear of pain on eating. Diagnosis is made essentially by patient’s description of pain, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of brain.
Trigeminal neuralgia can be relieved by oral tablets to be taken daily. Medical treatment has its limitations, and relief obtained may be incomplete. Another non-surgical method of treatment is by subjecting the patient to Gamma Knife Radiosurgery. This modality is available only at major teaching centers, and the results though encouraging, are inferior to those obtained by microsurgery.
Microneurosurgical treatment involves surgery and a short hospitalisation. The neurosurgeon separates offending artery from the trigeminal nerve (microvascular decompression).
Surgery is safe, and results are excellent with permanent relief, often with complete stoppage of medical treatment. trigeminal neuralgia can also occur due to a tumour in the vicinity of the nerve, and may require specific management for the tumour.
Disclaimer: The veracity of any health claim made in the above article is the responsibility of the hospital/doctor concerned.