Microvascular decompression (MVD) is the most effective long-term surgical treatment for trigeminal neuralgia (TN) patients. The risk factors for poor pain control following MVD surgery are not fully understood.
A significant proportion of patients with significant neurovascular compression fail to achieve long-term pain relief after technically successful surgery. Neuroimaging using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides a non-invasive method to generate objective biomarkers of eventual response to TN surgery 1).
Younger patients with TN had worse long-term pain outcomes following MVD. Additional factors associated with postoperative recurrence included poor preoperative pain control (BNI score > IV) and multivessel compression. Furthermore, SCA combined with PV was confirmed to be associated with a worse outcome 2).
Not all patients with TN manifest unequivocal neurovascular compression (NVC). Furthermore, over time patients with an initially successful MVD manifest a relentless rate of TN recurrence.
It does not achieve 100 % cure rate. Re-exploration of the posterior fossa may carry increased risk over first-time MVD and is not always successful, so other treatments are needed.
Age itself does not seem to represent a major contraindication of microvascular decompression for typical trigeminal neuralgia 3).
Patients 60 yr of age and older have significantly better long-term pain outcomes following MVD than younger patients 4).