Cronic Cheek Pain (old fracture and trigeminal nerve damage)

Steven S

New Member

Joined : May 2011

Posts : 1

Posted 5/13/2011 4:37 AM (GMT 0)

I am male and 29 years old. I was diagnosed with trigeminal neuropathy about a year ago. This was after I was assaulted and was hit repeatedly in the same maxillary bone (right side). The bone broke with a complex fracture, CT shows that is has healed and experts say the bones are not the cause of my cronic pain. I take 10mg hydrocodone / 325mg apap 3 times a day, but I can still feel my face throbbing. The pain and throbbing/discomfort gets worse when I lay down in bed. The pain goes from my upper-mid cheek, around my eye socket, towards my ear (but not far), and also feels as though it hits the top of my teeth a bit (I am told this is because of the trigeminal nerve damage). What is especially bothering is that around the top of my nose and under my right eye, it gets yellowed and dark, as if I had been punched again (but less hard) and this happens occasionally with no extra force exerted on the area.

I have had one facial surgeon say there's nothing he can do, but they have not yet been told about the recurring darkness I get under the one eye on the affected side of my face. I have a doctor's appointment Monday with a pain doctor where I will go over that with her and see what kind of doctor she recommends.

Has anyone else experienced these symptoms?

Thank you.

Chutz

Veteran Member

Joined : Jan 2005

Posts : 9477

Posted 5/13/2011 5:19 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Steven and welcome to the Chronic Pain family!

I'm so sorry that you have to live with this type of pain. It's hard for me to even imagine what it must be like. I do hope the pain doctor give you some relief via medications, if that's what you prefer. You are on a moderate dose of Vicodin and with your kind of pain it's not surprising you are miserable. This is all my opinion, obviously...just thoughts from my own experience.

If you are interested in having another opinion outside the circle of doctors you already have seen, I would suggest you try the closest university/teaching hospital. These folks are on the cutting edge of medicine and technology so you won't get put aside unless there truly is nothing left to do...and that's not an answer they like. At the top of the list of Topics is a thread called Chronic Pain 101. In there is a link to lists of university/teaching hospitals around the world. It's not a complete list but it hits every state and country anyway. Here's the link so you don't have to search for it...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_university_hospitals

Hope this helps,
Chutz

Lindaloo

Veteran Member

Joined : Sep 2006

Posts : 1713

Posted 5/13/2011 10:40 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Steven S,

And welcome to Healing Well's Chronic Pain Forum. Glad you found our site and hope you post often so we can get to know you better and you can get to know us. There are lots of wonderful people on this forum and I sure hope you will give us a chance. Our commonality - chronic pain - helps us together as a group, lend support to one another.

I'm sorry to hear of your dilemma. I have no words of wisdom to offer, only a prayer and a hope that you will find some answers at your pain dr. appointment.

Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you in the future. God bless.

Lindaloo

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