Treatment of Trigeminal Neuralgia with Microvascular Decompression

Trigeminal neuralgia has been discovered for a very long time. In the past, medical technology and medical knowledge could not explain pathophysiology of these symptoms. The treatment has been the trials and errors for a long time until carbamazepine was discovered, which is nowaday still the first line drug for treatment and also the therapeutic diagnosis for trigeminal neuralgia. However carbamazepine's tolerance and side effect are still major problems. Patient diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia has to suffer with their facial pain and their daily life, because the patient’s activity, such as talking, chewing, can cause a severe pain. This literature reviews history of trigeminal neuralgia, etiology, epidemiology, medical treatment, percutaneous intervention, and microvascular decompressive surgery for treatment of trigeminal neuralgia.