Neurosurgical treatment of short‐lasting, unilateral, neuralgiform hemicrania with conjunctival injection and tearing.

Abstract

Br J Neurosurg. 2002;16:55‐58.Trigeminal neuralgia solely involving the upper trigeminal nerve branch is rare. The SUNCT syndrome (short‐lasting, unilateral, neuralgiform hemicrania with conjunctival injection and tearing) in which the periorbital pain lasts for 60‐120 s, and is accompanied by conjunctival injection and tearing is even less common. Unlike trigeminal neuralgia, SUNCT is usually not relieved by medication. Three patients with SUNCT were treated with retrogasserian glycerol rhizolysis, two of them twice. All five treatments provided complete pain relief and the duration of the effects was 2 to more than 4 years. One of these three patients also had a third treatment with compression of retroganglionic fibres with a Fogarthy balloon, according to Mullan, of the upper trigeminal nerve with excellent results. Comment: Although lamotrigine has shown promise, no pharmacologic treatment has been found to work consistently for SUNCT. Are we really at the surgical juncture? SJT