Mark Steadman underwent an unusual operation. A piece of Teflon has been implanted in his face to protect the trigeminal nerve. Before the procedure, the slightest touch on the face caused agony in the man.
Mark Steadman has trigeminal neuralgia, which includes the optic, maxillary and mandibular nerves. This rare disease occurs with a frequency of 1: 15000. It is characterized by excruciating pain when it touches the nerve area.
This disease can be treated pharmacologically. Carbamazepine or tricyclic antidepressants are most often used for this purpose. Unfortunately, these methods do not always work. It turns out that patients with trigeminal neuralgia often commit suicide.
This was exactly the case with Marek. The man experienced over 250 bouts of pain a day. He compared these incidents to feeling as if lightning struck him in the face. Often surprised by pain, he would fall over and land in agony on the floor.
Mark was taking about 50 tablets a day. They had little effect and made the man dull.
An innovative method of treatment came to the rescue. The Briton has a titanium sheath implanted, which protects his nerves from irritation.
The disease destroyed my life, the pain was so terrible that I couldn’t cope with it, ”recalls Mark. I cannot express how happy I am to be able to kiss my wife and children again.
source: http://www.mirror.co.uk