• D Abejón, S García del Valle, C Nieto, C Delgado, and J I Gómez-Arnau.
• Area de Anestesia, Reanimación y Cuidados Críticos, Unidad de Dolor, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón, Alcorcón, Madrid. dabejon@fhalcorcon.es
• Rev Esp Anestesiol Reanim. 2005 Feb 1;52(2):109-14.

ObjectivesTo describe the use of pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) to treat 2 cases of glossopharyngeal neuralgia, 1 idiopathic and 1 secondary.PatientsThe first case involved a man diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma involving the tonsils and manifesting as glossopharyngeal neuralgia that was refractory to all treatment approaches tried, including opioids and neuromodulation. The second case involved a patient diagnosed with essential glossopharyngeal neuralgia that was also resistant to drug treatment. The PRF procedure was performed in the operating room on an outpatient basis, under fluoroscopic guidance and with conventional monitoring. No perioperative events were reported.ResultsThe treatment was effective for both patients, leading to decreases in visual analog scale pain reports between 5 and 7 points that were maintained over 6 months, although improvement for the patient with essential neuralgia was less intense and of shorter duration. Overall self-reported improvement assessed subjectively 6 months after PRF was 75% for the patient with Hodgkin's lymphoma and 50% for the patient with essential neuralgia, for whom a second PRF procedure was scheduled. Neither patient suffered complications or side effects that were potentially attributable to the procedure.ConclusionsPRF seems to be a safe, effective approach to treating neuralgia of the glossopharyngeal nerve, whether the condition is essential or secondary to another process. It is possible that if the condition is secondary, the clinical response may be greater in intensity and last longer.

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