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Papers of the Week


2022 May 17


Int J Environ Res Public Health


19


10

Trigeminal Neuralgia Is a Dementia Risk Factor: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Authors

Cheng Y-H, Wu C-H, Wang W-T, Lu Y-Y, Wu M-K
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 May 17; 19(10).
PMID: 35627610.

Abstract

: Dementia, a worldwide public-health issue, is regarded as a disorder rather than a normal aging process. Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a chronic debilitating pain disorder that impairs daily activities. Both are most prevalent in females and in patients older than 50 years. Recent studies reveal that pain and dementia may have a reciprocal interaction with each other. : In response, we estimated whether adults with TN have an increased dementia risk. : By means of Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database, between 1996 and 2010, 762 patients aged over 50 years in the TN group were matched with 3048 patients in the non-TN group at a ratio of 1:4. Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard regression models were also used to determine the cumulative incidence and compare the hazard ratios of dementia in each group. : The incidence of dementia was higher in the TN group compared to the non-TN group. After adjusting for covariates, the TN group had a 4.47-fold higher risk of dementia compared to the non-TN group. Additionally, the impact of TN on dementia risk was larger in young-aged patients than in old-aged patients. As well, the age at the time of dementia diagnosis was younger in the TN group compared to the non-TN group. : TN is a dementia risk factor. Given the lack of a curative therapy for dementia, early identification of TN patients may help to prevent dementia sequelae.