Abstract
Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a disabling painful condition along the course of the
sensory distribution of the trigeminal nerve that most commonly occurs due to vascular
compression or conflict at the root entry zone of the trigeminal nerve. We report
a 27-year-old female patient who presented with pain and an electric shock-like sensation
on the right side of her face that started three years ago. Magnetic resonance imaging
of the brain was done and revealed no neurovascular conflict along the course of the
trigeminal nerve. The absence of Meckel's cave with atrophy of the cisternal segment
of the trigeminal nerve on the affected side was reported. The absence of Meckel's
cave is an exceedingly rare cause of TN, and only a handful of reported cases in the
literature suggest the association between them.
Keywords
trigeminal neuralgia - neurovascular conflict - root entry zone - Meckel's cave
