People with trigeminal neuralgia often need to take medication for long periods of time. The causes of trigeminal neuralgia are still unknown, but they are all related to damage and abnormal discharges in the trigeminal nerve. Long-term medications such as carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine are needed to relieve the pain. Even during the period of pain relief, the medication should not be stopped at will; once the medication is stopped, the symptoms of this nerve pain will reappear. In a few people, the pain may disappear after two or three months of taking the medication, and there will be no more flare-ups, but this is very rare. In addition to medication, surgery may be considered, including vascular decompression, which may cure trigeminal neuralgia completely. After surgery, the patient may not need to take medication.