I promised a friend that I would post to this forum, to ask what your experience has been -- pro, con, or neutral -- with any form of facial nerve block. She has both Type I and Type 2 pain, possibly mixed with Fibromyalgia. She's getting adequate pain management with Norco, having come off of Methadone.
Any thoughts?
Regards, Red
I also have both types of TN plus fibro. Left side of my face, all 3 branches. I was only able to have one nerve block, an injection of lidocaine-type med and steroid in my lower gums, inside of my mouth. It hurt, but not nearly as much as TN. But it had little effect on the pain, plus I had a bad reaction to the steroid...terrible migraine-type headache, irritated. Doc said I could not have anymore injections :-(.
Hope this helps,
Pam
I have TN 1 and 2, V2 on the right side of face and I have Fibro. I have had 4 nerve blocks. First 2 were 2 weeks apart in Feb and March of 2012. First was of no help but the second helped a great deal. They were Zenelog and Lidocaine each time.. The PMS/Anesthesiologist said that many times it requires a second injection (in extreme circumstance-a third time) and that has proved to be true on 2 occasions for me. The last 2 were in Feb and March of 2013. All were performed under general anesthesia and were injected in front of my ear, on one occasion in front of my ear and beside my nose, above my lip. Its fairly rare to have short bouts of 24/7 burning in my upper gums and corner of mouth. Still have TN 1 shocks but they don't knock me to my knees nor are they constant. (A note about the day of injection: It is general anesthesia so I have to fast, they are very coordinated and I am in and out in an hour. Someone has to drive me but I walk out only slightly drugged. My face "feels" swelled and numb but does not appear so. I take a nap when I get home and after that I'm fine. Numbness lasts all that day and I get a brief respite. It can take up to a week to see how successful it will be.)
I had strong concerns about these injections: first, there didn't seem to be a record of strong success and second, I didn't want to damage the nerves more than they already were for fear of worse pain.
There seemed to be evidence that these injections could reduce the success rate of MVD if I should be a candidate for that.
BUT, The day came that I would have let them do ANYTHING! Period!
The first 2 helped so much that my life became bearable. They didn't stop the pain entirely, I still take meds. When I got the last 2, the pain wasn't as bad as it had been the year before. It was a good thing to get them before it was so that out of control again. Pain Doctor will give them once a year and he will not do them every year. He is very conservative and I'm thankful for that.
This is my experience with them and I hope it helps. There have also been several med changes but I will continue to get the nerve blocks if I need to.. Personally, I think my quality of life has improved so much that the risks seem small to me now. I do believe that its a very big decision to make and not to be taken lightly.
Sara
I have had 3 nerve blocks. They helped me for a max of 3 days and the pain was only 20% better. It did let me eat for 3 days. Nerve Blocks are usually diagnostic only. They did an RF after that and it made my pain worse and worse and worse. We had to increase my Hydrocodone-APAP and Gabapentin and Tegratol. I feel like I am worse off now then I was before it all started, but I too felt that I would let them do anything to help.
I did talk to a woman in the waiting room who also had TN and was going through the Nerve Blocks and RFs. She said she had been pain free for 2 years since she stated it. I really think, just like anything else with this disease that it depends on you and your TN. There is no right or wrong treatment until you try it.
Michelle
Hi I’ve just had my second. The first improved my pain partly after a poor first month having a bad flare up as a reaction to the injection. The second have been far more invasive and painful so I await to see the effects. Will update
Hi Red, I had one as part of a diagnostic requirement prior to a Stim implant for my ATM. The pain was horrendous, no anesthesia, it was worse than the c-section I had without anesthesia. It was Lidocaine and Steroid injected, the anesthesia took effect within about 10 minutes and lasted about 20 hours (was the only time I chewed meat in one and a half years, all three bites). The steroid did not work at all. The whole side of my face was sore and swollen and somewhat bruised. It was one of the worst experiences I ever had because it took so long and I had to remain so still for such a long time. The Dr got the info he needed but my TN became worse after the experience. Hope this helps Red.
I had 2 nerve blocks done a couple years ago, they neither made the pain worse or better for me. I’ve also run the prescription gamut with moderate success though the side effects were worse than the pain.
I had nerve blocks done, which aided in the tingle sensations across my scalp. However it did not help whatsoever with my GN, and only lasted about 6 hours.
Tried again with steroid, again only about 6 hours
Not worth it - unless it is for diagnostic purposes.
I had a nerve block done on my v-2 nerve in a cath lab done by a Anesthesiologist it lasted a few months then wore off so now i gonna try the mvd surgery
I have had two...type 2 pain. Had some relief for about 1 week each time.
Hi,
I have had two nerve blocks for my face and neck. I just did not know that the pain was TN. The first one was great and worked for a long time. Just make sure the person doing the block knows what he/she is doing. I had the 2nd one in July. It was also very helpful. However, by the beginning of October, everything on the TN started happening to me. The blocks had nothing to do with it. It is all just strange. I am still dealing with all of this and still trying to get proper diagnoses and doctors.
I have been wanting to thank you for all your advice and comments to everyone.
Linda
Thanks for the acknowledgement, Linda. I do what I can. I'll pass on your experience...
Go in Peace and Power
Red