Neuralgia is a condition in which your nerve gets damaged and cause sharp pain following the path of the nerve. It can cause serious irritation to your face and neck. The pain can burst out any time or can occur due to specific activities. Neuralgia doesn’t occur due to a single reason. It can have several causes like nerve damage, chemical irritation, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, infections such as herpes zoster, HIV/AIDS, Lyme disease, and syphilis.
Medicines such as cisplatin, paclitaxel, or vincristine are also the condition to occur. Other than these, it can occur due to blood disorder and pressure on nerves by nearby bones, ligaments or blood vessels. However, in many cases, the main cause is not detectable.
How to know you have neuralgia?
If you are feeling extreme pain on your face on a path of a particular nerve, then it may be due to neuralgia. When you touch your face, you feel pressure or pain that is unbearable. The pain is not constant. It comes and goes and can feel like stabbing pain. If you move along the area of the pain, it can get worse with movement. You may also feel as if your face has been paralysed. In case you are feeling any one of these, you must get it examined right away.
How can you test neuralgia?
There are no specific tests for neuralgia. However, the doctor can perform a physical examination. They can ask you for symptoms and then, lead to a conclusion. They can test your blood sugar, perform MRI, ultrasound, spinal tap, and so on.
You can also visit a dentist as sometimes facial pain occurs due to dental problems too. A dentist can examine you and see if any nerve has been damaged through your teeth.
How to treat neuralgia?
Treatment solely depends on the placement and condition of the pain. The doctor may prescribe medicines to suppress the pain. They can start treatment for nerve blockage, surgery to pull off damaged nerve, or acupuncture therapy.
It is always advisable to not take body aches lightly as they can be a sign of a bigger problem.
