1. Community
  2. Brain and nerves
  3. Trigeminal Neuralgia

Is thia TN or something else?

Posted , 4 users are following.

frank07011
frank07011

Hi. 

This is a question on behalf of my wife.   She's 63, in pretty good health but, like all of us beginning to feel the years add up physically. 

For about a year now she's been having sharp and sudden pains in her lower jaw, more precisely, if you were to draw a line down from the edge of her lips on the left-hand side (her left-hand side) and stop at about 3 centimetres, that's where she always feels the pain.   It can come at any time, day or night and lasts for just a second or two.     Sometimes it happens up to three times a day then she could go a couple of weeks without it happening at all.   She says it really hurts when it happens.  

What is slightly more worrying is that about 80% of the time she also feels an identical pain in her elbow.   It's like an electric shock that hits her in the two places at the same moment.   

We've looked on the net and can find very little on why this should happen other than it possibly being a heart or an angina problem.    She saw her cardiologist about two months ago who said it's not possible that it could be connected to her heart.   She had an x-ray of her jaw done at the beginning of the year but nothing was seen. 

We've also taken a really good look at TN and, although it may explain the facial pain, nowhere can we find that it can cause simultaneous elbow pain.   Even the variants of TN and similar ailments don't seem to have pain in both areas at the same time as a symptom.   So what could this be?  

Thanks in advance for any replies

0 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • frank07011
    frank07011

    Posted

    Sorry, made a typo in the title!!    Should have been "Is this TN or something else" of course.   I don't think I can edit it now that I've posted the question.
  • eddie13
    eddie13 frank07011

    Posted

    Frank,

    Aside from the elbow it sounds exactly like early stage TN. She'll have remissions, but it won't go away. Get to a neurologist right away.

    eddie13

  • Valkyrie
    Valkyrie frank07011

    Posted

    I must agree strongly with eddie13. Apparently the sooner Tn is diagnosed the better the outcome with drugs. However, many GP's are not up with

    Tn as it's rare so you must insist on a referral to a neurologist, although you could ask the GP to start her on Tegretol as, to quote a neurologist from the Brain and Spine Institute of Princeton "Giving this drug is also helpful from a diagnostic standpoint because if people respond to the Tegretol that is almost pathognomonic (specific as a diagnosis) that a person does have Trigeminal Neuralgia. A follow up with a neurologist is essential even if the GP does give a script for Tegretol and you find it works perfectly. Tn does not go away and usually worsens with time although it may have remissions. Tn has nothing to do with the teeth or gums so a trip to a Neurologist is also essential as, if it proves not to be Tn, they may give you a lead to follow up as to what it may be instead. Should your wife's condition turn out to be Tn, many helpful tips can be found on this forum and it's always a help to speak to others with the same condition. Please let us know the outcome.

    • frank07011
      frank07011 Valkyrie

      Posted

      Thanks Valkyrie.   We've made an apointment with our doctor and we'll push him for a referral to a good neurologist as soon as it's possible.

      We'll let you know what happens.

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.