Trigeminal neuralgia is a disorder in which sudden lightning-like pains strike the face which is due to the compression of branches by aberrant vessels. In its severe form it is regarded as the most excruciating pain that a person can experience. Drug therapy (especially carbamazepine) is often effective in relieving the pain, but when medications fail surgical treatment will provide relief in almost all cases. Over 30 patients with trigeminal neuralgia have had surgery, microvascular decompression at the KMH. Microvascular decompression does not result in the numbness associated with a radiofrequency procedure and results in permanent relief of pain, without facial numbness, in the vast majority of cases.


Hemifacial spasm is a disorder in which the seventh nerve is frequently compressed by branches of either the anterior inferior cerebellar artery or the posterior inferior cerebellar artery causing frequent twitching of facial muscle involving ocular muscles initially and later whole half of face which is quiet annoying and embarrassing to the patient. The disease also has good results after microvascular decompression.