I finallly have insurance but only hospital emercencys work untill april 1st! Im upset about the wait but its better than nothing, quiete expensive i might add. I have a few Drs.im looking into in New York, but i was wondering if anyone could refer a great neurologist or neurosurgeon to help treat my TN because i am moving out of Florida. I want an MVD, i have bilateral so i guess that's 2 that i need. Its very scary for me because im so new at this i don't know where to begin. Also do i need to see a neurologist first or neurosurgeon because one i wanted to see did treat with medicine. Thanks for your help!
Hi Jen
I saw Dr. Jeffrey Brown in Great Neck NY for my MVD. I have bilateral atypical TN. He did the procedure on my right side on January 25, and so far I could not be happier. I do not know if you would necessarily need to see a neurologist, except for the fact that your insurance may want you to try medicine before surgery I would also suggest you be careful that your new insurance does not have any clauses for pre-existing conditions, as that may cause you to have a waiting period before covering surgery. I did see a neurologist and try medication for about a year but it really did not work for me. My neurologist was not all that keen on referring me to a surgeon, so I went to Dr. Brown for an opinion on my own. I am sure he would see you without a referral, and probably without you going to a neurologist first. I am curious, though, as to whether or not you have tried any meds? I was taking Tegretol after my initial diagnosis , and it worked really well on the pain ,but I was allergic. Neurontin was next, and I maxed out on that very quickly, which led me to decide to have surgery. Don’t get me wrong, I am very glad I went ahead with the MVD, but it is MAJOR SURGERY. You may get some relief with the right medication before making the decision to undergo surgery.
Please feel free to ask me any questions about the surgery or Dr. Brown. I would be happy to share my experience with you!
Best regards
Christine
Hi Jen,
In general, medicinal treatment is the first step to try and relieve TN pain. The meds work better for some, than others, and there can be ( frequently) side effects.
I was the beneficiary of successful MVD surgery last summer after about 15 months of medicinal treatment. The meds were effective at first but later they weren't so much. The increased dosages were not good for me personally. As I said, some folks it works well for. Me, it didn't, and I was of the mind to have a surgical fix pretty early on in my TN life.
I was blessed to have The Massachusetts General Hospital nearby( Boston, I live in Rhode Island) and they handled the majority of my treatment and my surgery. ( you can look up the details in my posts) There are many facilities and surgeons who you can lean on. They are listed on this site.
Please reach out to me if you'd like me to elaborate on anything. Good luck, there is hope!!!
Rick
I skipped my GP and a neurologist and went straight to a neurosurgeon. He had me try drugs first as apparently if you get a good outcome from the meds, that means the MVD should work. After a month of no pain on drugs but a zombie like life, I scheduled the MVD.
It is 2 months and I am very happy with the results.