…medications are available to treat trigeminal neuralgia, but these may become less effective over time.
There is also a risk of undesirable side effects. In these cases, surgery may be the best option.
Painkillers, such as paracetamol, will not relieve the pain of trigeminal neuralgia. Doctors, therefore, prescribe anticonvulsant medication. These are normally used to prevent seizures, but they can also reduce or block the pain signals sent to the brain. They do this by calming the nerve impulses.
The most common anticonvulsants for trigeminal neuralgia are:
carbamazepine (Tegretol, Carbatrol, Epitol)
phenytoin (Dilantin)
gabapentin (Neurontin)
topiramate (Topamax)
valproic acid (Depakene, Depakote)