Trigemme neuralgia: literature review

Abstract

Introduction: Neuralgia is a pain that stretches along the path of a nerve. As regions of the head and neck are more affected places and a trigeminal neuralgia is more common among facial neuralgias. Objective: To review the literature on the concept, diagnosis and treatment of trigeminal neuralgia. Methodology: An integrated review was carried out in the MEDLINE, LILACS and SCIELO Virtual Library databases, using the following documents: Neuragia and Trigemeio. The results of the research were published in all cases, in Portuguese, Portuguese and Portuguese. Results and Discussion: The search resulted in 6,205 articles, these, 30 were separated by amount of subject matter, however, only Nine meeting the inclusion criteria. A trigeminal neuralgia belongs to the group of chronic pain conditions and is classified as primary and secondary. It has a predominance of females, between 50 and 70 years of age and almost always is unilateral. Pain is characterized as paroxysmal, acute, superficial, triggered by the estimation of trigger zones, most of the life born and the skin of the middle region of the face. The patient may present hyposthesia or paraesthesia of a certain area and paralysis of one or more masticatory muscles. The diagnosis is clinical, as well as complementary tests in cases of neuropathic pain. The initial treatment is done by non-invasive methods, with the use of carbamazepine medicines. It can be surgically tested, which is success in 70 and 85% of cases. Conclusion: The articles presented, of facial neuralgias, one that is a bit slower and more common. It has a variable and prolonged clinical course regarding the frequency and intensity of pain. The treatment can be medicated or surgical.