POST-HERETIC NEURALGIA

Abstract

Objectives: To assess the efficacy of intra-lesional triamcinolone in for thetreatment of Post Herpetic Neuralgia. Study Design: Prospective interventional study. Setting:Dermatology Department of Dow University Hospital. Period: July 2014 to June 2015. Patientsand Methods: Twenty nine patients with diagnosis of Post Herpetic Neuralgia were includedafter taking written and informed consent. An insulin syringe was used for the injections andthe medicines were injected intralesionally. The mixture contained 30/70% of triamcinolone toxylocaine ratio for local infiltration in post herpetic scars. Pain relief assessment was done withthe help of visual analogue scale (VAS) after two months. Mean pain score before therapy andafter therapy was compared with one sample student t test. Results: Out of total 29 patients 14were male and 15 were females. The mean age ±SD was found to be 45.9± 15.4 years. Themost common region involved was Chest. The mean ±SD duration of Symptoms was 5.58 ±1.80 weeks. The mean pain score before therapy was 6.86 ± 1.66 which after one month oftherapy reduced to 3.72 ± 1.86. The reduction in pain was statistically significant (p<0.001).Conclusion: Post Herpetic Neuralgia can be effectively treated by the local infiltration of amixture of triamcinolone and lignocaine. It is recommended that long-term follow-up studiesshould be done with corticosteroids only or in combination with local anesthetics to additionallyevaluate the effectiveness of such treatment in postherpetic neuralgia.