Idiopathic facial pain syndromes—an overview and clinical implications

Persistent idiopathic facial pain.

Trigeminal neuralgia and persistent idiopathic facial pain.

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) and persistent idiopathic facial pain (PIFP) are two of the most puzzling orofacial pain conditions and affected patients are often very difficult to treat. TN is characterized by paroxysms of brief but severe pain followed by asymptomatic periods without pain. In some patients a constant dull background pain may persist. This constant dull pain sometimes makes the dis...

Ideal Soft Tissue Facial Profile in Iranian Males and Females: Clinical Implications

BACKGROUND Proper pre-operative facial analysis that includes a thorough evaluation of both the bony and soft tissue anatomy is paramount to success in performing aesthetic surgery of the face. Ethnic variations in soft tissue profile add an important variable to pre-operative facial analysis. The aim of our study was to determine the role of ethnic variations in soft tissue facial profiles th...

Facial pain: clinical differential diagnosis.

Differential diagnosis of pain in the face as the presenting complaint can be difficult. We propose an approach based on history and neurological examination, which allows a working diagnosis to be made at the bedside, including aetiological hypotheses, leading to a choice of investigations. Neuralgias are characterised by stabs of short lasting, lancinating pain, and, although neuralgias are o...

Central neuron-glia interactions and neuropathic pain: overview of recent concepts and clinical implications.

Eduardo E. Benarroch, MD Neuropathic pain results from injury or disease causing dysfunction at any level of the somatosensory (primarily spinothalamic) system, including peripheral nociceptive axons, dorsal root ganglion (DRG), dorsal horn, spinothalamic pathway, and thalamus. The manifestations of neuropathic pain, including spontaneous pain, hyperalgesia, and thermal and mechanical allodynia...