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Indian Journal of Emergency Medicine 11(4):p 253-258, Oct - Dec. 2025. | DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijem.2395.311X.11425.7
Case Report
A Shot at Relief: A Case Series on Infraorbital Nerve Block for Intractable Trigeminal Neuralgia in the ED
Satyendra Meena, Shrirang Joshi, Sanjeev Bhoi
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Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
Indian Journal of Emergency Medicine 11(4):p 253-258, Oct - Dec. 2025. | DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijem.2395.311X.11425.7
How Cite This Article:
Meena S, Joshi S, Bhoi S. A Shot at Relief: A Case Series on Infraorbital Nerve Block for Intractable Trigeminal Neuralgia in the ED. Indian J Emerg Med. 2025;11(4):253-8.Timeline
Received : June 16, 2025
Accepted : July 21, 2025
Published : December 30, 2025
Abstract
Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a debilitating facial pain syndrome that is often difficult to manage with standard treatments. Although specific regional anaesthesia techniques are available, they are rarely practised in the Emergency Department (ED). We discuss three cases of patients with severe, intractable TN pain unresponsive to oral medications, where an infraorbital nerve block (IONB) was performed for pain relief. IONB using an intraoral (classical) approach, a 30-gauge needle was inserted at the infraorbital foramen after antiseptic preparation, and 1 mL of 2% lignocaine combined with 1.5 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine was administered. All three patients experienced immediate pain relief, and no immediate adverse effects were observed. Follow-up over six months showed that two out of three patients had long-lasting pain relief, supporting the potential of IONB using local anaesthetics as a viable intervention for sustained pain relief. This case series highlights the effectiveness of IONB as an alternative treatment for trigeminal neuralgia in patients who do not respond adequately to conventional pharmacologic therapies in the emergency setting.
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Data Sharing Statement
There are no additional data available. All raw data and code are available upon request.
Funding
This research received no funding.
Author Contributions
All authors contributed significantly to the work and approve its publication.
Ethics Declaration
This article does not involve any human or animal subjects, and therefore does not require ethics approval.
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our gratitude to the patients, their families, and all those who have contributed to this study.
Conflicts of Interest
No conflicts of interest in this work.
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Cite this article
Meena S, Joshi S, Bhoi S. A Shot at Relief: A Case Series on Infraorbital Nerve Block for Intractable Trigeminal Neuralgia in the ED. Indian J Emerg Med. 2025;11(4):253-8.
Licence:
Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
| Received | Accepted | Published |
|---|---|---|
| June 16, 2025 | July 21, 2025 | December 30, 2025 |
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijem.2395.311X.11425.7
Keywords
Infraorbital nerve blockRefractory trigeminal neuralgiaPeripheral nerve blocksSearch for Similar Articles
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Timeline
| Received | June 16, 2025 |
| Accepted | July 21, 2025 |
| Published | December 30, 2025 |
licence
Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
