If you experience a sudden electric shock or burning sensation around the lips, eyes and forehead on half of the face, which is aggravated when brushing your teeth, eating, touching your face, shaving or even feeling the breeze, and the pain lasts for a few seconds to a few minutes, you should beware of trigeminal neuralgia. Trigeminal neuralgia should be distinguished from toothache and headache. Trigeminal neuralgia is mainly pain in the area where the trigeminal nerve is located on the face. It is slightly more common in women than in men, and most of them develop after the age of 40, but it is worth noting that the age of onset of trigeminal neuralgia has gradually decreased in recent years. Trigeminal neuralgia pain site is often located unilaterally, with the right side being more common; the distribution of the Ⅱ and Ⅲ branches of the trigeminal nerve is the most common, and the simple Ⅰ branch pain is rare. The onset of trigeminal neuralgia has the characteristic of sudden onset and sudden stop, which can be distinguished from toothache and headache, and the effect of taking carbamazepine is obvious at the early stage of the disease. Trigeminal neuralgia is divided into primary trigeminal neuralgia and secondary trigeminal neuralgia. The primary trigeminal neuralgia is more than 90% caused by the compression of the trigeminal nerve root by blood vessels, while the secondary trigeminal neuralgia is mostly caused by various intracranial and extracranial organic lesions, and its performance is similar to the primary trigeminal neuralgia. The cause is clear, such as multiple sclerosis, primary and metastatic tumors. The treatments for trigeminal neuralgia include oral carbamazepine, radiofrequency ablation of trigeminal nodes, balloon compression of trigeminal nodes, and microvascular decompression of trigeminal nerves. Oral medication Most patients with trigeminal neuralgia will have their pain relieved after taking carbamazepine at the early stage of onset. The effect of carbamazepine is mainly to inhibit the pathological polyneural reflex of trigeminal nerve and reduce the excitability of cell membrane, so as to achieve pain relief. Carbamazepine treatment for trigeminal neuralgia can only provide temporary relief, is more prone to relapse, and has certain toxic side effects when taken for a long time. Balloon compression Balloon compression is performed by implanting a balloon into the trigeminal nerve hemimelia with the aid of imaging, and then injecting a contrast agent into it to expand the balloon, thus compressing the trigeminal nerve hemimelia and destroying the sensory part of the trigeminal nerve so that the pain sensation disappears to achieve the treatment purpose. This method is suitable for patients of advanced age and poor health condition who are unable to undergo general anesthesia. Trigeminal nerve microvascular decompression Trigeminal nerve microvascular decompression is performed by making a 4-cm incision behind the affected ear, inside the hairline, finding the area of the trigeminal nerve emanating from the brainstem under a microscope, finding the arterial or venous vessels responsible for compressing the root of the trigeminal nerve, and separating them with cotton pads. The advantage of the surgery is that it does not destroy the trigeminal nerve root, the semilunar ganglion and the three branches of the nerve, so that the physiological function of the trigeminal nerve can be restored to the maximum extent and the facial sensation can be preserved to the maximum extent. 90% of patients generally have better results after surgery, so it is a very mainstream surgical method at home and abroad, and it is also the most effective treatment for trigeminal neuralgia with the highest cure rate at present. There are many treatment options for trigeminal neuralgia, but some of them may not have exact results. Patients who want to undergo radical treatment can do so through surgery, which is currently the most effective method of treating trigeminal neuralgia.