Üsküdar University NPISTANBUL Hospital Brain and Neurosurgeon Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa said that "trigeminal neuralgia" disease occurs with sudden, very short-term, sharp and excruciating unbearable pain on one side of the patient's face.

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa said that Trigeminal Neuralgia develops as a result of compression of the "Trigeminal Nerve" (V. Cranial Nerve), one of the cranial nerve pairs, by an artery, usually in the DREZ segment, just after exiting the brain stem. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa said, "Trigeminal Neuralgia is the sudden, very short-term, sharp, excruciating, excruciating, unbearable pain that occurs suddenly on one side of the patient's face."

Branches carrying nerves are involved

Giving information about the symptoms of Trigeminal Neuralgia, Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa said the following:

"Trigeminal Neuralgia is characterized by sharp, excruciating unbearable pain that lasts for a few seconds, as if it were an electric shock; pain can be spontaneous with intermittent irregular intervals, or it can be triggered by various reasons such as eating, drinking water, exposure to cold wind, shaving, talking. The trigeminal nerve provides facial sensation through its three branches (1st branch: eye and periocular branch, 2nd branch: upper jaw/maxillary branch, 3rd branch: lower cheek-chin/mandibular branch). In trigeminal neuralgia, one or more of these branches are involved, or initially only one branch is involved, but the disease progresses over time and other branches are also involved."

Caused by compression of the nerve

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa said, "The commonly accepted cause of Trigeminal Neuralgia is compression of the trigeminal nerve just after it exits the brain stem - in the DREZ segment. This compression is often caused by an artery (most commonly the upper cerebellar artery = SCA, etc.) hitting the nerve with each heartbeat; it can also develop as a result of tumor compression or in degenerative diseases of the brain, such as Multiple Sclerosis MS."

Trigeminal Neuralgia can be treated

Stating that there are many different treatment options for trigeminal neuralgia, from drug therapy to microsurgical nerve release, Prof. Dr. Bozbuğa said, "There are various drugs that are specifically effective in trigeminal neuralgia; these drugs reduce or eliminate the pain that is a symptom of the disease, but do not correct the structural problem that causes the disease and their effectiveness decreases over time."

Complete treatment is provided with MVD surgery

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Bozbuğa stated that Microvascular Decompression MVD surgery in Trigeminal Neuralgia provides a high rate and mostly permanent and complete treatment and concluded his words as follows:

"Pain can be eliminated by making various lesions/damage (many interventions that prevent conduction at certain points and in certain parts of the nerve) in the trigeminal nerve; these lesions can be performed by different methods such as drug injection or specially developed balloon application, radiofrequency or radiation. The direct treatment to correct the cause of the disease, which is adhesion/constriction and compression, is microsurgical nerve release surgery. "Microvascular Decompression MVD surgery in Trigeminal Neuralgia" provides a permanent and complete treatment at a high rate and mostly, and does not require any additional treatment."