Medication for Mouth Nerve Pain

Sometimes called trigeminal neuralgia, mouth nerve pain is a condition that causes sudden, extreme sensations of burning or electricity. Although there is no cure for mouth nerve pain, doctors rely upon a number of prescription medications to reduce the frequency and severity of symptoms.

Types of Medications

• Doctors typically prescribe anticonvulsants and muscle relaxants for the relief of mouth nerve pain. In some cases, patients take a combination of both classes of medications.

How the Medications Work

• Anticonvulsant medications suppress the activities of your central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), which diminishes the pain signals transmitted from your mouth nerves. Muscle relaxant medications inhibit the conduction of messages across your spinal cord, which also decreases feelings of pain.

Examples of Medications

• Anticonvulsants used for mouth nerve pain include carbamazepine, phenytoin, oxcarbazepine, lamotrigine and gabapentin. The most commonly prescribed muscle relaxant for mouth nerve pain is baclofen.

Time Frame

• Doctors commonly prescribe these medications for daily use, for as long as they remain effective against mouth nerve pain. Unfortunately, it is possible to lose sensitivity to both anticonvulsants and muscle relaxants over time; according to MayoClinic.com, you may need to switch medications periodically.

Risks and Side Effects

• Side effects of medications used for mouth nerve pain include dizziness, confusion, drowsiness, nausea and double vision. Risks associated with anticonvulsant medications include suicidal thoughts, life-threatening allergic skin reactions and aplastic anemia.