None — BACKGROUND: Trigeminal neuralgia is a chronic pain condition that affects the trigeminal nerve, which carries sensation from your face to your brain. If you have trigeminal neuralgia, even mild stimulation of your face, such as from brushing your teeth or putting on makeup, may trigger a jolt of excruciating pain. Only one in 15,000 people have it. (Source: Mayo Clinic)
CAUSES: In trigeminal neuralgia, the trigeminal nerve's function is disrupted. Usually, the problem is contact between a normal blood vessel, in this case an artery or a vein, and the trigeminal nerve at the base of your brain. This contact puts pressure on the nerve and causes it to malfunction. Trigeminal neuralgia can occur as a result of aging, or it can be related to multiple sclerosis or a similar disorder that damages the myelin sheath protecting certain nerves. (Source: Mayo Clinic)
TREATMENT: Treatment usually starts with medications, and many people require no additional therapy. However, over time, some people with the disorder eventually stop responding to medications, or they experience unpleasant side effects. For those people, injections or surgery provide other trigeminal neuralgia treatments options. (Source: Mayo Clinic)
GAMMA KNIFE RADIOSURGERY: The Gamma Knife unit aims 201 narrow "pencil beams" of radioactive cobalt-60 at the trigeminal nerve, focusing precisely on the target and minimizing radiation effects to surrounding healthy tissues. Because radiosurgery is the least invasive procedure for trigeminal neuralgia, it is a good treatment option for patients with co-morbidities, high-risk medical illness, or pain refractory to prior surgical procedures. (Source: GammaKnife.org)
MICROVASCULAR DECOMPRESSION: The reason for trigeminal neuralgia is presumed to be an abnormal blood vessel pressing over the fifth nerve at the site of origin. To prevent the pressure effects, a Teflon pad is interposed between the blood vessel and the nerve. Once the pressure is relieved over the nerve, the neural transmission is supposed to return to normal. It has been reported to provide immediate, complete relief in 79 percent of patients. (Source: Mayfield Clinic)