Orofacial pain is concerned with pain targeted towards head, shoulders and jaw. This includes migraines, toothaches, dental trismus etcetera. Fortunately, with the advancement of medical science, a number of treatments are available to counter this.
Dr. Khawaja Shehryar is an experienced pain management specialist in Lahore. He is currently practising in Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Center as an orofacial pain medicine consultant.
In his session with oladoc, he touches on some of the common orofacial pains and pain disorders in Pakistan: migraine headaches, head and neck disorders, secondary headaches, trigeminal neuralgia, and others.
Q.1: How do you describe orofacial pain?
Orofacial term is an umbrella term that covers pain which targets the head, face and jaw. Specialists trained in this field receive formal training aimed at dealing, diagnosing and manage this pain. Primary cases of orofacial pain are headaches, migraines, tension and anxiety headaches, cluster headaches and pain in the jaw joints.
This can also sometimes be caused by painful nerve syndromes and various other painful conditions that affect the face and the jaw.
Q.2: What are the treatment options for trigeminal neuralgia?
Well, in this age multiple treatments are available. Thankfully in Pakistan as well, all treatments are available. Research primarily shows that specialized medications that specifically act on nerves which cause these sensations of pain are highly effective and preferred.
Other procedures such as injections administered with local anaesthesia in areas of the brain affected are also successful treatments. Surgeries performed by neurosurgeons are also an effective alternative.
Q.3: Tell us about migraine headaches?
Migraine is a primary headache disorder; it is a disease in itself and does not provide an indication of anything else. For example, migraine is not caused by the food you eat; unfortunately, people are born with this disease which gets triggered at different times. It is more common in people in the age group of 20-40 years; it is characterized by throbbing headache on one or both sides of the head.
The patient usually finds strong lights and sounds irritating, symptoms might also include nausea. Anything outside of patients’ regular routine can serve as a trigger, for example, change in sleeping cycle or eating pattern.
Q.4: Why are migraine headaches more common these days?
Well, these days the triggers have become frequent for people. In today’s hectic work ethic, it is very common for people to skip meals, sleepless due to work tensions and stress. Also, other factors like an increase in humidity, heat and other environmental factors are usually fluctuating as well.
Q.5: What are some different treatments for migraine headaches?
There are specialized medications if migraine occurs about 5-4 days a month, if this number is greater than a patient is prescribed specialized medications they have to consume every day, once or twice.
These medicines are aimed at stopping and reducing the severity of a migraine attack, these medicines cannot fully prevent a migraine from occurring, unfortunately, but they definitely help manage it effectively. Injections are also used to ease the nerves causing pain.
If you want to know more about orofacial pain and pain disorders, watch the full video. You can find and book an appointment with the best pain management specialist. You can book an appointment via the website, mobile app or by calling our helpline at 042-3890-0939 for assistance to find the RIGHT professional for your concerns.
