Could a virus cause Trigeminal Neuralgia?

[painterchic]

I have had Trigeminal Neuralgia for about a year now. At first it was severe, more the type 1 classic and mostly the horrible pain was in my head. Later spread to my face. Now I have been diagnosed as type 2 or Atypical TN with the constant pain with the occasional episode of breakthrough stabbing pain of the classic type.
What makes me different than the average case is that originally shingles was suspected although I never really had sores, only a slight red mark on my scalp. I also had severe joint pain in my hands for months and was tested for RA my my neurologist, which came back negative. I also had joint pain in my hips, and then my knee, as well as over all fatigue. The joint pain is now gone. My neurologist thinks a virus may be the cause but how can we know. The Lymes test at my primary care doctor came back negative, as we figured it would.
Any ideas? The cause of my TN does influence my treatment options in terms of surgery. I currently take Topomax and Vimpat as the standard drugs did not work or I had reactions to them.
Thanks for your advice.
JB

[lencyadmire]

I have a similar story to share with. I am 45 years old and had gone through nightmares of pain through my cheek bones. I used to yell in pain but with no help. My doctor had prescribed me top rated pain killers that only gave relief for a few hours and again I had to feel the same terrible and agonizing pain. My husband could not see me in such pain and he searched the web. He searched and searched and found something great on the internet. He got a chance to chat with a live doctor who suggested my husband to order the natural the Biogetica Freedom Kit with OM 10 Formula. My husband researched about the ingredients. He ordered the kit and I am taking it for a few weeks. I am really feeling much better and my condition has really improved.

[ritabatra01]

please try olive leaf extract liquid form for trigeminal neuralgia

[loo43]

what are you meant to do with it? got any links?

[nancy99n]

There is post-hermetic Trigeminal neuralgia caused by shingles. I have read on other sites that some people get relief from Accupuncture  

So sorry you're not only dealing with pain but also dealing with doctors who aren't helping. That is so frustrating.

Perhaps a Facial Pain Specialist could help you. It's so hard to find a good doc.

Wishing you all the best.

[Prknz]

i had shingles on the left side of neck and face in 06. because i have a herniated disk in my neck c4/5. the shingles came out of  weakest part of my body, my neck.. my rash was not too bad. mostly red, swelling on the left side of face and neck. however, the nerve pain did not go away nor disappear. Over the yrs i have been diagnosed w. post herpetic neuro. i am sure that is correct. but i feel, after doing research on my own, it is my trigeminal nerve that got effected my the shingles virus,i believe this nerve is being pinched by the bulging disks...i get this horrible pain that shoots thru the nerves in my face on my left side. it starts on the left side near the ear, where the facial nerves are then spreads up the side of my face, eyebrows, side/under the left eye, ear, jaw and my neck hurts too. at first i was having difficulty finding a dr. who believed me. sometimes i feel w. nerve pain it is not as obvious as broken bones etc. and i have had drs who dont believe me because of the fact it is not obvious..and that is pretty upsetting..i cannot tolerate meds such as lyrica, neuronton etc. the side effects are bad so they had to treat the pain with strong opioid pain killers which turned into a night mare...for the last 2yrs it has been quiet, manageable, but the last few months it is starting to act up and get worse..usually ibuprofen, muscle relaxants, nausea medication was controlling it..but it is starting to bother me more and more. i am just starting to go back to the drs again to see what we can do..i have noticed to since the nerve damage that i get what is called "myclonic jerk". when you fall asleep at night your muscles start twitching..at first it would do this once in a while (few times a week) now it is every night when i fall asleep my muscles, mostly left side start to spasm and it is waking me up. the only time it will happen during the day is when i take a nap..it will do it again. and they are getting stronger and more frequent..i am frustrated and in pain. my past experience w. drs etc. has not been good and i am concerned that it will get worse and no one will do anything or try to do anything to help. in the past i was taking klonipin for panic attacks and we found that it did help a little bit, but i was scared to take them daily because of the concern of addiction because it is a benzodiazipine..and  i am predisposed to addiction, i am a little nervous about taking them. since i cannot tolorate the standard meds they use to treat this my options are few and far between...i apologize for carrying on, i am just frustrated and it helps to speak to others who understand..because unless you have experienced this first hand you dont have a clue as to what it is like. some try to give advice or be sympathetic..but it is not as easy as some think..usually i get "take some advil"  or they dont believe me because it is not obvious..if anyone out there who reads this  and can understand what i am dealing with  i would appreciate to hear your story or any advice you can give me...thank you so much...

[fazlab]

There is something called post herpetic neuralgia that you can get after having shingles. The pain is supposed to be just like TN but eventually goes away in most cases. You might want to look into that! Good luck!

[painterchic]

I posted this to the autoimmune forum for Prof Garth Nicolson but they moved it back here. Guess it didn't qualify. Just disregard it. I was hoping the viral/lyme/RA would catch his attention as a theory. Guess not...