Comparative Assessment of the Effectiveness of Carbamazepine and Baclofen in the Management of Trigeminal Neuralgia.

OBJECTIVES

The study aimed to compare the effectiveness of carbamazepine and baclofen in the medical management of trigeminal neuralgia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

100 trigeminal neuralgia patients were randomly divided into two groups with 50 samples in each. Group A had patients treated with carbamazepine while Group B comprised of patients treated using baclofen. Follow-up was performed on the initial, 15 days, 1 month, and 3 months duration. The data was statistically evaluated.

RESULTS

Carbamazepine showed a "good response" in 54.39% of patients at initial follow-up, and adverse side effects increased in 20-29.49% of patients from the initial to 3-month duration. On the other hand, baclofen demonstrated a "good response" in 54.45% of patients at initial follow-up. At 800 mg, a "good response" was noted in 87.9% of patients, whereas 16.9% of patients had an "average response" and a "good response" after 1 month. At 3 months, 99.87% of patients showed a "good response." Both groups showed similar success rates after 3 months.

CONCLUSION

Adverse effects incidence and success were similar in both groups.