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Updated: May 31, 2026
Subcutaneous Trigeminal Nerve Field Stimulation for Refractory Facial Pain
Published on: May 10, 2017
Trigeminal neuralgia: a retrospective study of 188 Thai cases
Aree Jainkittivong1, Vilaiwan Aneksuk, Robert P Langlais
1Department of Oral Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. aree.j@chula.ac.th
Objective:
To describe the clinical characteristics and treatment of trigeminal neuralgia (TN) in a group of Thai patients.
Materials And Methods:
Records of 188 patients with TN were reviewed retrospectively for patient demographics, the characteristics of the pain and treatment modalities.
Results:
Of the 188 patients, 37.2% were men and 62.8% were women. The peak incidence (46.8%) was in the age range of 50-69 years. Pain occurred on the right side of the face more often than on the left (1.8:1). The mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve was the most frequently affected (30.3%), followed by the combined maxillary and mandibular divisions (29.3%) and the maxillary division alone (25%). The majority described their attack as a sharp pain (77.6%), and the most common primary locations were at previous extraction sites (40.5%). The most common triggers were chewing (61.2%) and speaking (47.3%). Carbamazepine was the most common prescribed drug (76.1%) for the initial treatment. Combination drug therapy was introduced when the monotherapy failed to control the pain. Surgical intervention was the alternative choice of treatment in refractory cases.
Conclusion:
TN affected women more than men, and this disorder occurred most frequently in patients aged 50 years and older. The mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve was most commonly involved.
