Late recurrence of glossopharyngeal neuralgia after IXth and partial Xth nerve rhizotomy: treatment by microvascular decompression

[...]that the pain was due to involvement of the remaining non-trigeminal somatic afferent components of the spinal trigeminal nucleus (in the VIIth and the remainder of the Xth cranial nerves); secondly, that it was some form of postdenervation pain akin to the anaesthesia dolorosa described after Vth nerve section 1 and in one instance after IXth nerve section; and, thirdly, it was a form of trigeminal neuralgia, there being a reported coincidence of the two forms of neuralgia in a few cases. 2 The close similarity of the recurrent to the initial pain, both in nature and site, the long period since the initial pain, and the response to carbamazepine all favoured the first possibility. [...]the young age at first presentation is against a vascular pathology, particularly where the vertebral artery is causative; and thirdly, there is a reported incidence of new vascular compression in re-exploration for recurrent trigeminal neuralgia.