Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 19, 2026

A Bedside, Single Burr Hole Approach to Multimodality Monitoring in Severe Brain Injury
Published on: March 26, 2019
Anesthesia dolorosa caused by penetrating cranial injury
Mehmet Tatli1, Ugur Keklikci, Ufuk Aluclu
1Department of Neurosurgery, Medical School, Dicle University, TR-21280 Diyarbakir, Turkey. mtatli@dicle.edu.tr
Abstract:
Anesthesia dolorosa (AD) is an uncommon complication of surgical treatments for trigeminal neuralgia. Its incidence is around 0.8%. To our best knowledge, AD caused by a penetrating cranial injury has not been reported previously. We report the case of a 31-year-old male patient with left-sided neuropathic keratitis and AD that began 18 years earlier, following a penetrating cranial injury with a knife to the left postauricular area. The patient was successfully treated by a carbamazepine and gabapentin combination. In conclusion, penetrating cranial injury is uncommon but may cause a serious neurologic disturbance. In the differential diagnosis of AD, a penetrating injury should be kept in mind. In these cases, treatments should be effective and immediate; otherwise, this may result in catastrophic consequences such as neurotrophic keratitis and blindness. Ophthalmologists should be aware of these potential problems.
Related Concept Videos
Blood and Nerve Supply to the Bones
Nutrient Artery
The nutrient artery is the main blood vessel that enters the diaphysis via the nutrient foramen. While most long bones have only one nutrient foramen, large bones, such as the femur, may have two. This...
General Anesthesia: Overview
General anesthesia induces unconsciousness in the whole body, while the others target specific areas or sensations. It is administered to minimize adverse effects, maintain...
Increased Intracranial Pressure ll: Pathophysiology
Parenteral Anesthetics: Overview
Local Anesthetics: Clinical Application as Epidural Anesthesia
Since epidural anesthetics can be infused through an epidural catheter, all types of drugs, including short-acting ones, can be administered. Chloroprocaine and lidocaine are examples of short and long-duration anesthetics, respectively. Bupivacaine...
Local Anesthetics: Adverse Effects
Once absorbed into the systemic circulation, local anesthetics can affect the organs that depend on the functioning of sodium...

