Facial muscle spasm, trigeminal neuralgia

  Facial spasm, trigeminal neuralgia, and glossopharyngeal neuralgia are common and frequent diseases. The incidence is especially high in our province. Facial muscle spasm is involuntary twitching on one or both sides of the face, and some patients have facial deformation or facial paralysis due to long-term twitching.  Trigeminal neuralgia is a sudden electric shock-like pain on one or both sides of the face (divided into frontal, facial and jaw), which is episodic in nature, with each attack lasting from a few seconds to several minutes. The pain is so unbearable that some people mistake it for toothache and even undergo dental plucking treatment. Glossopharyngeal neuralgia is a pins-and-needles pain in one or both sides of the pharynx when swallowing or not swallowing, and in some cases, it seriously affects eating and normal life.  The cause of facial spasm, trigeminal neuralgia, and glossopharyngeal neuralgia is an abnormal arterial vessel in the skull that is too close to or compresses the facial nerve, trigeminal nerve, or glossopharyngeal nerve. When the artery pulses, it stimulates the facial nerve, trigeminal nerve and glossopharyngeal nerve, resulting in a change in the action potential of the above nerves, causing pain or twitching of the above nerves.  The traditional treatment methods are: taking carbamazepine tablets, closed treatment, radiofrequency treatment, acupuncture or botulinum toxin injection. However, all of them are symptomatic treatment and cannot be treated from the cause. With the development of microsurgery and neurological microvascular decompression technology, the above diseases can be treated fundamentally. Microvascular decompression surgery is a new type of microscopic neurosurgery carried out in recent years with the aid of a microscope, under which tiny blood vessels and nerves can be clearly seen.  Microvascular decompression surgery for facial spasm, trigeminal neuralgia and glossopharyngeal neuralgia is performed by making a small incision of about 3 cm behind the ear on the side of the patient, drilling a small hole of about 2 cm in diameter in the skull, and then finding the arterial vessel that is compressing the nerve in this small hole and separating it from the nerve, as well as placing a special artificial material (peptide fluoride cotton) between the two so that the artery will no longer stimulate the nerve when it is pulsating, in order to treat spasm and pain. The purpose is to treat spasm and pain. It is the only allopathic treatment for facial spasm, trigeminal neuralgia, and glossopharyngeal neuralgia.