Trigeminal Neuralgia Symptoms & Diagnosis

Symptoms

The main symptom is searing pain on one side of the face. The pain may be felt inside the mouth or in the lips, cheek, chin, nostril, ear, or near the eye. Rarely, pain may occur in the eye or forehead. Twitching or wincing sometimes accompanies the pain.

The pain is typically sudden, severe, and stabbing. Even though the pain is often brief (less than two minutes) it can reoccur hundreds of times per day. Attacks, which can become totally disabling, may seem to occur at random or be triggered by extremes of temperature, washing, shaving, touching, or tickling the face. There are usually no symptoms between attacks, except perhaps a dull ache.

Diagnosis

The doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history, and perform a physical exam.

Tests may be performed to help diagnosis underlying conditions that may lead to TN. These may include:

• CT scan —a type of x-ray that uses a computer to make pictures of structures inside the head
• MRI scan —a test that uses magnetic waves to make pictures of structures inside the head

You may be given the antiseizure medication (eg, carbamazepine ). This medicine may reduce pain and is sometimes used to help diagnose the disorder.