Trigeminal Neuralgia or tic douloureux involves episodes of extreme pain in the various regions of the face. Various factors like eating, cold air, or speaking can trigger the pain of neuralgia and make it intense. The sharp shooting pain, sometimes even due to touching, is a characteristic feature of Trigeminal Neuralgia. While some cases are manageable with medications, non-surgical treatment procedures are also the possible alternatives in various cases. One of the best options for Trigeminal Neuralgia is Cyberknife Radiosurgery which gives new hope to the patients. If the cause of Trigeminal Neuralgia is a tumor, Cyberknife Radiosurgery would be of great help in eliminating the tumor and thereby, relieving the symptoms.
Pain relief through Cyberknife Radiosurgery for Trigeminal Neuralgia
Cyberknife Radiosurgery is amongst the most effective treatment options for Trigeminal Neuralgia. The treatment does not require patients to undergo any kind of surgery and one can experience relief in symptoms within one month. In a few cases, some of the patients experience relief after a year or two of the treatment due to the complexity of the case. The biggest benefit of Cyberknife Radiosurgery is that it destroys the root cause of the problem. Because of the elimination of the cause, the condition is resolved permanently.
Cyberknife Radiosurgery procedure for treating Trigeminal Neuralgia
The Cyberknife system utilizes the robotic arm combined with x-ray detectors that provide real-time imaging. The patients undergo CT cisternography that helps in visualizing the Trigeminal Nerve. A contrast material is injected through a lumbar puncture followed by tumor delineation by the neurosurgeon and/or radio oncologist. Next, dose selection and inverse planning are done where the dose to the target volume is determined to prevent irradiation of normal tissue. The mean marginal dose provided is around 60-80 Gy which helps in treating the cause efficiently. A majority of the patients experience pain relief following the procedure within 1-2 months.
FAQs
While more than 80 percent of the patients get pain relief immediately after the procedure, they are some patients who experience facial numbness.
Stereotactic Radiosurgery through the Cyberknife system is the latest, most advanced, and highly recommended treatment for Trigeminal Neuralgia.
The frequency of sessions for Cyberknife Radiosurgery completely depends upon the location of the tumor that’s causing Trigeminal Neuralgia. Also, the size of the type is a considerable factor for the number of sessions required but most people require 2-5 sessions.
Yes, imaging tests like MRI help doctors diagnose the presence of Trigeminal Neuralgia. The test reveals if there is pressure on the trigeminal nerve and held doctor plan the treatment.
The condition is amongst the ones that expand over the long term with chances of recurrence. However, the recurrence period tends to get short with time.
One must avoid foods like hot soup, high sugar foods, junk & spicy foods, highly processed foods, and caffeinated drinks if he or she is suffering from Trigeminal Neuralgia.