Tag: Trigeminal neuralgia treatment India

Trigeminal neuralgia medication-how to take them?

Posted on | by Dr. Jaydev Panchwagh | 45 Comments on Trigeminal neuralgia medication-how to take them?

Trigeminal neuralgia medication, at least the majority of them, are anti-convulsants.

“How to take them-Trigeminal neuralgia medication?”

Can I take TN medication when I feel the pain coming on?

Can I add more drugs during a Trigeminal neuralgia attack?

Do I have to continue taking the Trigeminal neuralgia medicines even if I have no or minimal pain?

These are all questions that frequently come to the patients’ minds.

What is essential to understand is that TN medicines are not straight-forward pain-killers. They are primarily anti-convulsants or brain numbing medications. Once the first pill is consumed, it takes a few hours to reach the blood. The liver simultaneously metabolizes the drug, while some of it also reaches the brain to act upon. So in effect, the blood level reduces. Over a period of the next few hours, the blood level will become zero. Before this happens, we need to consume another pill to increase and maintain the blood level. If this does not happen, there is no effect on the pain as well.

In short, regular medication is essential to maintain a particular blood level of the drug, so that it calms the brain/ nerve. This calming effect means that they do not respond to pain signals, and therefore have a neuralgic-pain-reducing effect.

Another key point to be noted is that the dosages need to be very gradually increased (and decreased also).

What happens if I take too many TN pills?

Well, you will certainly start manifesting all the side-effects of these anti-convulsants, like drowsiness, dizziness, imbalance, mental clouding, memory loss, depression etc. This is why, their dosages have to be adjusted by your doctor, who will determine what is right for you. One typically starts with the lowest dosage twice or thrice a day. This may be increased to maximum doses four times a day.

What happens if I miss a couple of doses of TN medication?

The blood level reduces, and you may experience break-through pain.

Allergic reactions to Trigeminal neuralgia medication

When starting off drugs to control TN pain for the first time, one has to be aware of and be on the lookout for allergic reactions. Though rare, it is not unheard of. I have come across a few patients in my practice. Typically they are in the form of skin rashes. These may be the harbinger of a very serious and potentially fatal Stevens-Johnson syndrome. If one notices skin rashes on consuming TN medication, please inform your doctor immediately and stop taking it.

What are the commonly used medication for trigeminal neuralgia?

What other drugs than anticonvulsants are useful for TN pain?

Is TN permanent?

What are some of the FAQs about TN?

Is there a cure for Trigeminal neuralgia?

Who is Dr Jaydev Panchwagh?

Youtube videos explaining in detail about Trigeminal neuralgia

Can I hear some patient testimonials? MicroVascular Decompression surgery to cure Trigeminal neuralgia.

How do I contact Dr Jaydev Panchwagh?

Trigeminal Neuralgia Patient Testimonial | Laxminarayan Gogineni

Posted on | by Dr. Jaydev Panchwagh | 31 Comments on Trigeminal Neuralgia Patient Testimonial | Laxminarayan Gogineni

I suffered from Trigeminal Neuralgia and this is my patient testimonial:

I suffered from Trigeminal Neuralgia for five years before my Microvascular decompression surgery. Symptoms of TN for me was a severe shock like pain along the lower jaw.

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Calming an attack of trigeminal neuralgia

Posted on | by Dr. Jaydev Panchwagh | 41 Comments on Calming an attack of trigeminal neuralgia

One of the most important questions I am asked, or rather one of the important phone calls I handle are tips on calming an attack of Trigeminal neuralgia. In other words:

How do I deal with a TN attack?

Well, primarily, it means that you have been diagnosed, and you recognize an attack. But before we learn how to deal with an attack of TN or learning how to calm the trigeminal nerve, we should first check that we have a few things in place.

  • Do you keep a pain diary? 

This is very important to recognize what events led up to the attack, its duration, frequency etc.

  • Have you noticed any trigger factors that bring on an attack?

There are different trigger factors for different people, but the commonest are touch, brushing,                  eating and talking. Maintaining a pain diary helps identifying trigger factors.

  • Have you noticed any actions that may reduce your pain?

Again, being observant and trying different remedies at home in the initial phases when the pain is            not so severe can help.

  • Have you noticed any foods that may bring on an attack?

Writing down in a pain diary will help narrow down pain-triggering foods. One of the problems of              Trigeminal neuralgia medication is that there is an obtundation of memory and recall. Writing                    down helps recall, and can help others also analyze the things that led up to the attack. Also,                        identifying pain-safe foods for you will help ward off an attack.

Simple measures that may help calming down a Trigeminal neuralgia attack

  • Hot water bottles / cold presses
  • Pressure of entire palm on affected side: cupping the face with palm
  • Medication like Tegretol, especially if you have forgotten to take a dose
  • Capsaicin or hot pepper creams
  • Seeking a calm atmosphere
  • Going indoors and avoiding breeze
  • Avoid long journeys
  • Drink from a straw, eat soft foods so you don’t have to chew
  • Light exercise to release natural pain-relieving hormones (for some, exercises like walking can worsen an attack).

My Trigeminal neuralgia attack keeps coming back. What do I do?

Unfortunately, if your TN attacks are non-responsive to medication and other measures, you might have to consider Microvascular decompression surgery. This is one of the treatment options, which when considered early on in the disease, can lead to a potential cure.

 

Dr Jaydev Panchwagh is a renowned neurosurgeon in Pune who is an internationally recognized surgeon for Trigeminal neuralgia treatment in India. he has performed over a thousand MVD procedures with a 98% success rate. He has an international patient service to help those patients coming from outside India.

He has a You Tube channel, Dr Jaydev Panchwagh, if you are interested in watching his lectures on Trigeminal neuralgia. There are also many patient testimonials, which help in allaying fear and anxiety about surgery. Our team has one of the best results in trigeminal neuralgia treatment in India.

You may contact the team which will lead you to avail of all our services.