Hi,
Many people with Trigeminal Neuralgia start their journey off in the dental chair. TN can perfectly mimic tooth pain. Mine does almost every day!
And then there are the people that have nerve injury from dental procedures--I have heard many of their stories. They walked into the dentist a normal, healthy person and left in chronic pain.
Yes it is shocking how common these problems are. You will hear from many people that are in the same situation. You may be better off on the Trigeminal Neuralgia board.
It sounds like you are taking all of the right steps. Unfortunately receiving a concrete diagnosis is difficult. Many doctors will not diagnose Type 2 TN. Unless you have the classic Type 1 symptoms you will probably receive a "atypical facial pain" diagnosis or a "neuropathy" diagnosis.
Unless there are compressions showing on the MRI most doctors will not go any further.
From your description of your pain, sensations and locations it sure sounds like neuralgia to me.
I have bilateral Type 2 TN that started off in one tooth. Long story short I had an unnecessary root canal and realized it was not my teeth. A year and a half in and I am still convinced sometimes that there must be something wrong with a tooth. But then the next day it may not hurt at all and maybe a different one will.
Nortriptyline is helpful to many people with this type of neuropathy or neuralgia. I am on Amitriptyline and it has been very good to me. Another drug that is helpful is Lyrica.
What dosage of Nortriptyline are you taking and how long have you been taking it?
Quote:
Originally Posted by bradrich11
Hi.This is my 1st time posting.I live in the UK.I cant believe how common my problem is.I went to the dentist as my tooth hurt,no problem so far.Anyway to cut a very long story short,i had an infection under the tooth,which eventually ended up being extracted,it was my L7 on right (Molar). The root was left in situ until removed some weeks later.Anyway before root was removed i knew something wasnt right,as the pain wouldnt go.Then i had numbness and mild electric shocks to face. I had different sensations all the time,and some of these did not appaear straight away,none of it did really,just the pain,numbness and 'oddness' ,which can only be explained as my face didnt feel like my own.Ive had crunchy glass feelings,burning mouth,teeth feeling like they are on ice,the list goes on. I am currently on 3 nortriptyline per day,i cant seem to tolerate gabapentin,neurontin and one other ,so rely solely on nortriptyline.Has anyone tried any other drugs that do not have horrible effects. I have severe dry mouth,have gained a little weight,and i cannot have a proper 'wee',it seems to bring on 'urinary retention'. And what other stuff do people in constant pain do to help themselves. I am in the 8th month of my injury,which i believe is probably nerve damage to lingual nerve ,and may have brought on a neuralgia.Nothing has been determind yet,even though i have had MRI. My doctor also calls it CRPS,but i dont think hes ruling out trigeminal neuralgia. I try to remain hopeful that i will recover,but that feeling can diminish when im not feeling ok. All new ideas welcome. Thanks
ps. i did put this elsewhere on another thread,and the moderators kindly diverted me to here
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