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Debunking myths in facial pain diagnosis for the pain practitioner.

Debunking myths in facial pain diagnosis for the pain practitioner. Regional anesthesia and pain medicine Schuster, N. M., Argoff, C. E., Barad, M. J., Kesayan, T., Kissoon, N. R., Narouze, S., Qian, X., Romero-Reyes, M., Yuan, H. 2026

Abstract

Facial pain disorders, most notoriously trigeminal neuralgia, cause substantial suffering, functional impairment, disability, and impaired quality of life. However, most pain medicine practitioners have had only limited education on the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of facial pain. Furthermore, this limited education often contains commonly held myths about facial pain diagnosis. These myths can result in misdiagnoses that lead to ineffective medications, interventions, or surgeries and prolonged pain. Therefore, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine's Headache and Facial Pain Special Interest Group convened a multidisciplinary group of neurologists, anesthesiologists, and dentists to identify and dispel pervasive myths in facial pain diagnosis.

View details for DOI 10.1136/rapm-2025-107382

View details for PubMedID 41506700