Trigeminal Neuralgia
Prognosis
There is no specific cure for trigeminal neuralgia (TN). It is a chronic pain disorder that you may spend the rest of your life finding ways to manage. TN pain may go away for months or years but can come back again. Your TN pain may come more frequently or become more severe over time. For some people, medication alone may be enough to relieve TN pain. Other people will need invasive procedures such as surgeries or injections. While these procedures may relieve pain for long periods of time, there are risks and complications that you must consider before choosing. It is possible for TN to recur.
Treatment often does not relieve all of your pain. You may need to find complementary therapies such as acupuncture, biofeedback or relaxation techniques to decrease the pain even more. You may need to change treatments or repeat some treatments over time. For example, if medication stops helping or causes too many side effects, you may need injections or surgery. You may get short-term relief from an injection and need to have another one when your pain increases. The best way to cope is to learn everything you can about TN and the treatment options available to you. Knowing a lot about your condition will prepare you to make the best choices for your treatment and care.
Treatment often does not relieve all of your pain. You may need to find complementary therapies such as acupuncture, biofeedback or relaxation techniques to decrease the pain even more. You may need to change treatments or repeat some treatments over time. For example, if medication stops helping or causes too many side effects, you may need injections or surgery. You may get short-term relief from an injection and need to have another one when your pain increases. The best way to cope is to learn everything you can about TN and the treatment options available to you. Knowing a lot about your condition will prepare you to make the best choices for your treatment and care.