How to treat trigeminal neuralgia?
Trigeminal neuralgia is a neurological disorder primarily caused by pressure on blood vessels along the trigeminal nerve, resulting in intermittent pain similar to that caused by cuts or burns. Prolonged trigeminal neuralgia can lead to loss of appetite, and over time, patients may become reluctant to leave their homes and experience significant depression.
I. Surgical treatment
Trigeminal neuralgia can be treated surgically. Surgery can directly sever the peripheral nerves and nerve roots, reducing vascular pressure. However, this method causes the trigeminal nerve to lose its normal physiological function, achieving a temporary analgesic effect, but may cause sequelae such as facial paralysis, hemiplegia, and ataxia. After a period of time, the trigeminal nerve regenerates, causing pain again, resulting in a high recurrence rate.
II. Oral Western Medicine
Oral medications can provide temporary pain relief or pain reduction. However, these medications can develop resistance; as the oral dosage gradually increases, their effectiveness diminishes and the side effects become more severe. Long-term use can lead to granulocytopenia, isolated thrombocytopenia, blood disorders, memory loss, vision loss, hearing loss, and liver dysfunction.
III. Acupoint Injection of Drugs
Acupoint injection of medication is used to temporarily paralyze nerves and relieve symptoms, but this treatment has significant side effects, easily leading to facial numbness and sensory disturbances. Incorrect nerve block can cause blindness or even permanent damage, and repeated nerve blocks often result in poor analgesia. Therefore, it is generally not recommended for treating trigeminal neuralgia.
IV. Gamma Knife
The principle of Gamma Knife therapy is to focus gamma rays onto the nerve nuclei or pain transmission pathways associated with pain. High-dose irradiation disrupts these pathways, blocking pain transmission and achieving an analgesic effect. The procedure is simple, safe, reliable, involves no surgical bleeding, has an efficiency of over 90%, and reduces the recurrence rate of trigeminal neuralgia. This treatment method is currently one of the most effective.
V. Radio Frequency
Radiofrequency devices generate an electrothermal sensation in tissues, selectively destroying pain-conducting fibers based on the temperature resistance of different nerve fibers, thereby achieving an analgesic effect.