Cosmetic Implant Dentist Charlotte TMJ Holistic
Paul Plascyk, General Dentist
Trigeminal Neuralgia, Dentist Charlotte NC
Cranial nerves exit from the base of the brain instead of the spinal cord (below).
There are 12 cranial nerves. The trigeminal nerve is one of these nerves.
http://www.lhsc.on.ca/Health_Professionals/CCTC/edubriefs/thrdl1.htm
Trigeminal neuralgia (nerve pain) occurs when the trigeminal nerve is compressed or irritated. Pain will be felt in the cheek, forehead, nose, sinuses, lips teeth jaw, etc. The pain comes on suddenly and is intense. The trigeminal nerve supplies most of the feeling to the face and the innervates the jaw muscles. The most common cause of nerve compression is by the Superior Cerebellar Artery.
As the Superior Cerebellar Artery compresses the nerve, the nerve becomes irritated and hypersensitive to light touch, vibration, temperature and position sensors in the jaw muscles.
A trigger is something that starts a neuralgia episode. Triggers include: light touch, applying something hot and cold to the face and dental work. The pain is usually one sided and occurs more in women. Trigeminal neuralgia is particularly nasty because it interferes with daily activity such as eating, swallowing, brushing teeth. Eating, washing, and touching your face.
Treatment for trigeminal neuralgia includes medications, surgery and injections. The most common surgical procedure is microvascular decompression (MVD). In MVD the Superior Cerebellar Artery is teased away from the Trigeminal Nerve and a barrier is placed between the two.