Severe Bilateral Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia Managed With Nerve Blocks Following Plasmodium falciparum Malaria Infection Treated With Mefloquine
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Internal Classification of Headache Disorders diagnosis for glossopharyngeal neuralgia (GN) includes recurrent paroxysmal severely painful attacks in the glossopharyngeal nerve distribution. Precipitating factors may be swallowing or talking, and diagnosis is made by exclusion. Conservative management includes medications, such as carbamazepine. For refractory cases, interventional nerve blocks may be required.
CASE REPORT: A 38-year-old woman experienced severe bilateral GN and occipital neuralgia with atypical migraines after treatment with mefloquine for severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Symptoms included the inability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs) due to severe "electric sharp stabbing pain." Following ineffective conservative management, she was successfully treated with a series of nerve blocks every 3 months. Over time, with repeated interventions, she acquired a significantly lower baseline of pain enabling her to participate in ADLs.
CONCLUSIONS: This case report highlights nerve blocks as a viable treatment option for refractory bilateral GN following treatment with mefloquine.
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a case report, done in people. Its evidence level is 5 of 5 (Very low · case / narrative / animal / in vitro / in silico). Case reports, narrative reviews, and animal, cell or computer-model studies give the weakest evidence for human health.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Calcium Ions in the Physiology and Pathology of the Central Nervous System
- AI-powered in silico twins: redefining precision medicine through simulation, personalization, and predictive healthcare
- In silico functional, structural and pathogenicity analysis of missense single nucleotide polymorphisms in human MCM6 gene
- In Silico drug repurposing pipeline using deep learning and structure based approaches in epilepsy
- Targeting serotonin receptors with phytochemicals – an in-silico study
- In silico exploration of anti-prostate cancer compounds from differential expressed genes
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.