title: Effect of microvascular decompression in trigeminal neuralgia patients with or without constant pain.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the effect of microvascular decompression (MVD) in trigeminal neuralgia (TN) patients with or without constant pain.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study includes all first-time MVDs for facial pain performed by the senior author (PKE) during the 6-year period from 1999 to 2005 in the Department of Neurosurgery at the National Hospital. At the time of follow-up, pain relief was assessed using a standard mail questionnaire; those patients still having residual pain were further examined in the outpatient clinic or interviewed by phone.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The total study population includes 135 patients who underwent initial MVDs (67% of MVDs for TN without constant pain and 33% of MVDs for TN with constant pain). At the time of follow-up, the response rate was 95%, which provided us with 128 patients. The median observation period was 38 months (range, 12-87 mo). For episodic pain, MVD caused complete (i.e., 100%) pain relief in 78% of TN patients without constant pain and in 77% of TN patients with constant pain before MVD, and a significant pain relief (i.e., worst pain marked as 0-3 cm on a 10-cm visual analog scale) in 85 and 81%, respectively. For constant pain, MVD caused complete pain relief in 70% of the TN patients with constant pain before MVD, and significant pain relief in 77%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In TN patients with constant pain before MVD, significant relief of episodic and constant pain was observed in 81 and 77%, respectively. Hence, the presence of constant pain should not prevent TN patients from being offered MVD.
authors: Department of Neurosurgery, Division of Clinical Neuroscience, The National Hospital (Rikshospitalet), Oslo, Norway.
authors: Tiril
authors: T
authors: Sandell
authors: Per Kristian
authors: PK
authors: Eide
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease; D019299:Decompression, Surgical / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014277:Trigeminal Neuralgia / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*