John Zuniga, D.M.D., Ph.D.
Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
UT Southwestern Medical Center
6263 Harry Hines Blvd.
4th Floor, Suite 110
Dallas, TX 75390-9193
214-645-3999
Dr. Zuniga's page at UT Southwestern
Transcript: Dental care and procedures for trigeminal neuralgia patients
For the patient who has trigeminal neuralgia and/or trigeminal neuropathic pain and receiving dental care, my recommendations are to not withhold standard dental care because of these disorders. For the patient with trigeminal neuralgia, generally and hopefully that the pain can be controlled and interventions such as simple dental procedures or even oral and maxillofacial surgery procedures should not enhance, exacerbate or cause a remission of the neuralgia pains or an exacerbation of those pains into a worsening state. Statistically in my practice, I do not see that process. So my recommendations are to continue your dental care as per yourself and your dentist.
If a patient with trigeminal neuralgia is in pain and the trigger is in the area or within the areas where the dental procedures need to be provided that is a special circumstance. But generally you should still be managed on an ambulatory basis meaning that dental procedures still require and often require local anesthetics. So standard dental procedures such as fillings, implants, bridgework, periodontal surgery or periodontal treatment still can be provided with the assistance of local anesthetics.