Trigeminal neuralgia: clinical features and therapeutic attitude at the Idrissa Pouye General Hospital in Dakar

Abstract

To study the characteristics of trigeminal pain and the treatments applied to this condition in the odontostomatology department of the Idrissa Pouye General Hospital in Dakar (Senegal).This is a retrospective study, involving records of patients with trigeminal neuralgia who were followed in the odontostomatology department between January 2015 and June 2020. The inclusion criterion was any patient record containing complete information and presenting trigeminal neuralgia treated in the odontostomatology department. We used sociodemographic, clinical and therapeutic variables. Of the 52 patients, 70% were female. According to profession, half of the patients (49.9%) were unemployed. The pains described were mainly of the type of electric dump (42.3%) and strock stab (30.76%). Pain was triggered at a trigger point related to touch on trigger zone in 28.84% of cases, and spontaneous pain in 26.92% of cases. Trigeminal neuralgia affected the V1, V2 and V3 nerve. The duration of symptoms varied over one or more years. Carbamazepine was routinely prescribed in patients in this study in combination with vitamin B1B6B12. Depending on the intensity of pain, prednisone was also prescribed. Thirty-four patients were given alcohol. The pain subsided in the patients over a period of 1 month to 1.5 years.