Facial Pain & Trigerminal Neuralgia

“A fit of such violent and exquisite torment…” — John Locke describing Trigeminal Neuralgia, 1677

Each year, hundreds of thousands of people worldwide develop a syndrome of severe unilateral facial pain known as trigeminal neuralgia or tic doloreaux. Typically, pain starts memorably and spontaneously, has a lancinating electrical shock-like component, and is triggered by cutaneous stimuli such as light touch or wind. While remission is common, symptoms tend to recur and intensify over time. When medications do not work, there are several surgical options that can alleviate or even permanently cure trigeminal neuralgia.