A 72-years-old woman, Mrs. M.Y (PIN 33369) visited Life Force on 30th August 2017 with her complaints of trigeminal neuralgia. From the past five years, she was suffering from trigeminal neuralgia and the right side of her face was affected by it. She was experiencing an electric shock-like pain when moving the jaw. The pain would settle over the right eye. The patient had operated for the same with no relief in her complaints. The frequency of pain was 2-3 times/week, and her pain would be continuous for 2-3 hours. Her pain used to get aggravated by brushing, gargling, chewing, and eating the sweets. She was already on Oxetol 300 mg 1 tablet daily for 1 year. She was also suffering from hypertension, which was under control with the conventional medicines. 

The patient was vegetarian by diet and had an average appetite. She craved for buttermilk and lassi. Thermally, she was sensitive to the cold weather.
There was no past history and family history of any major illness. 

She was very talkative and friendly by nature. She had a happy-go-lucky kind of life. She was very religious. The patient had a soft nature. She never felt angry in her life. 

After going through her detailed case history, she was prescribed medicine by Dr. Shah on the basis of the totality of symptoms. 

At her first follow-up on 26th October 2017, she reported a 20%-25% improvement in her condition. The severity of her pain had reduced. She was advised to taper the dose of Oxetol to 150 mg. 

On her follow-up on 19th December 2017, her condition had improved. The frequency of pain had reduced to 1-2 times/week, and her pain would last for just a few seconds. This time again, the patient was advised to taper the dose of Oxetol 150 mg to alternate day.

On her follow-up on 23rd February 2018, her condition had improved by 50%-60 %. By this time, the patient had stopped taking Oxetol. 

On her follow-up on 4th May 2018, her condition had improved by 75% to 80%. She didn’t experience an episode of pain in the last 2 months in spite of stopping Oxetol. Overall, the patient was very happy with the relief and improvement in her condition. 

Conclusion:

This case illustrates that homeopathy is quite effective in treating trigeminal neuralgia and alleviating the discomfort resulting due to it.

- Written by Dr. Amrita K, Associate doctor to Dr. Rajesh Shah