A little while ago, a dental college OPD was approached by a patient complaining about severe jolt-like tooth pain radiating to his face, dysphagia, sensitivity, extreme irritability and inability to even talk or chew properly.
The patient prior to this went from random clinic to clinic, got root canal treatment done, and he still was unhappy.
When he finally approached the dental college, he was diagnosed with a significant chronic pain disorder.
Name the disorder. What is the first line of treatment?
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The pain could be arising from an unfinished root canal treatment. If the infection is not completely removed, the pain will persist and infection can spread resulting in pain.
Another cause could be pain disorder .. trigeminal neuralgia.. but this is a rare diagnosis.
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Trigeminal Neuralgia is the right answer.
Carbamazepine is the first drug of choice.
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This sounds like Trigeminal Neuralgia, a cruel chronic pain disorder. The first line treatment is typically Carbamazepine, a medication to help calm those severe nerve pains and offer relief.
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Based on the symptoms described, the disorder is likely:
-Trigeminal Neuralgia
Characterized by sudden, severe, shock-like pain in the face, often triggered by everyday activities like talking, chewing, or swallowing.
First line of treatment typically involves:
-Medications like Carbamazepine
This anticonvulsant medication is often effective in managing trigeminal neuralgia symptoms. Other options may include other medications or, in some cases, surgical interventions.
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Trigeminal neuralgia. The tooth can be healthy and still have the pain. In such cases trigeminal neuralgia would be the diagnosis
I like this ‘guess me’ approaches.
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Good clinical vignette! Thanks.
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