Comparative study between microvascular decompression and radiofrequency for treatment of trigeminal neuralgia

Abstract

Background: microvascular decompression usually provides prolonged pain relief in trigeminal neuralgia patients. microvascular decompression usually provides prolonged pain relief in trigeminal neuralgia patients and is presumed to promote the remyelination demyelination alone does not offer a complete explanation of trigeminal neuralgia symptomatology. the use of radiofrequency (RF) to lesion the trigeminal nerve is that it may selectively injure/destroy the unmyelinated or poorly myelinated nociceptive nerve fibers and spare the (heavily) myelinated fibers which serve touch, proprioception, and motor function. 

Objective: to comparing the results of microvascular decompression and radiofrequency protocols management in order to establish the optimum way for management of trigeminal neuralgia.

Patients and methods: This study was conducted at Sohag El-Helal health insurance, Cairo university hospital and Sohag university hospitals between DEC 2013 and DEC 2015. Patients were divided into two groups, each one includes 15 patients.

Results: there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups regarding to Demographic data, Clinical presentation data, affected nerve division data and Pain evaluation data.

Conclusion: In our study, the pain distribution was, in most of the cases, related to the Lower division of the trigeminal nerve 2nd and 3rd 80%. Pre-operative evaluation for pain in our study use Verbal Description of Pain to evaluate the pain before any intervention. 76.6 % had horrible pain 10\10. According to the score 15 patients underwent percutaneous radiofrequency rithotomy was excellent. (T-0) And 14 patients underwent MVD was excellent .and one was poor. (T-5).