Efficacy of pregabalin in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia
Corresponding Author
M Obermann
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Mark Obermann, MD, Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, 45122 Essen, Germany. Tel. + 49 201 723 84385, fax + 49 201 723 3789, e-mail [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorMS Yoon
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorK Sensen
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorM Maschke
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Department of Neurology and Neurophysiology, Bruederkrankenhaus Trier, Germany
Search for more papers by this authorHC Diener
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorZ Katsarava
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
M Obermann
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Mark Obermann, MD, Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, 45122 Essen, Germany. Tel. + 49 201 723 84385, fax + 49 201 723 3789, e-mail [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorMS Yoon
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorK Sensen
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorM Maschke
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Department of Neurology and Neurophysiology, Bruederkrankenhaus Trier, Germany
Search for more papers by this authorHC Diener
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorZ Katsarava
Department of Neurology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen and
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
This prospective, open-label study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of pregabalin treatment in patients suffering from trigeminal neuralgia with and without concomitant facial pain. Fifty-three patients with trigeminal neuralgia (14 with concomitant chronic facial pain) received pregabalin (PGB) 150–600 mg daily and were prospectively followed for 1 year. The primary outcome was number of patients pain free or with reduction of pain intensity by > 50% and of attack frequency by > 50% after 8 weeks. Secondary outcome was sustained pain relief after 1 year. Thirty-nine patients (74%) improved after 8 weeks with a mean dose of 269.8 mg/day (range 150–600 mg/day) PGB: 13 (25%) experienced complete pain relief and 26 (49%) reported pain reduction > 50%, whereas 14 (26%) did not improve. Patients without concomitant facial pain showed better response rates (32 of 39, 82%) compared with patients with concomitant chronic facial pain (7 of 14, 50%, P = 0.020). Concomitant chronic facial pain appears to be a clinical predictor of poor treatment outcome. PGB appears to be effective in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia.
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