For the first time in Oman, the Royal Hospital performed the radio frequency intervention procedure to treat trigeminal neuralgia in a 65-year-old woman. The patient was suffering from intractable facial pain. The hospital, represented by the Pain Clinic, performed the procedure to treat trigeminal neuralgia, a disease that causes extreme episodes of pain in the face. The episodes are often like ‘electric shocks’, lasting from a few seconds to several minutes.
Aged women are the main sufferers but it can occur in anyone.
Most of the time, the cause is identified near the brain.
It is thought to be caused by compression of the ‘trigeminal nerve’ by a loop of artery or vein.
Despite many oral medications, this type of pain often continues for months and years.
Radio frequency intervention is one of the best options for treating the problem.
Usually it is a daycare procedure with minimal side effects or complications.
Pain relief usually lasts for a long time, though it varies from patient to patient. The 65-year-old patient confirmed that after two weeks her pain had come down by 70 per cent and her quality of life had improved.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
