What is mental nerve neuralgia?
Mental nerve neuralgia is a painful disorder of the mental nerve, which may be damaged or not function properly.
Causes
Mental nerve neuralgia can have many different causes. The most common cause is a complication of dental treatment. If this is not the cause, the disorder may be the first sign of a (general/systemic) malignancy.
Signs and symptoms
Patients complain of numbness of their cheek and lower lip, in combination with neuropathic pain.
How is mental nerve neuralgia diagnosed?
The first thing that must be done is a neurological examination of the cheek and lips. You will always be given a thorough examination by a dentist. If necessary, and if the problems did not result from dental treatment, further examinations are done to exclude other causes.
Do I need additional examinations?
- Diagnostic examination for other non-physical factors important for your pain, have already been done by yourself trough filling out your pain questionnaires.
- If the doctor suspects other causes, he or she will refer you to an internist.
What are my treatment possibilities?
Multidisciplinary Treatment
Depending on the cause of your pain, your pain specialist will decide whether or not to embark on physical treatment. Based on the results of the completed pain questionnaire, additional examinations can be carried out and, apart from physical treatment, other methods of treatment will be suggested.
Non-physical Treatments
If the results of your pain questionnaire are abnormal, your pain specialist will offer you one of the non-physical treatments listed below:
- Psychological Treatment
- Depression Treatment
- Cognitive-Behavioural Treatment
- Rehabilitation Treatment
Physical Treatments
Medication
Interventional Pain Treatments