“Doctor, it’s like a tiny gremlin tap dancing on my face!” exclaimed Mrs. Sharma, a vivacious woman in her late 40s, who, despite her current predicament, still managed to accessorize her pain with a rather stylish scarf. “And not just any tap dancing,” she continued, her voice rising in pitch, “but the kind with those steel-tipped shoes! The ones that make you want to hide under the table!”
Now, facial gremlins are not typically part of a middle-aged lady’s daily routine, unless they’ve been indulging in some particularly potent homemade chutney. Mrs. Sharma, however, assured me that her culinary adventures were strictly limited to the occasional over-spiced curry. A thorough examination revealed the true culprit: the trigeminal nerve, that mighty cranial nerve responsible for facial sensation and chewing, was misfiring like a faulty electrical circuit.
“So, it’s not a gremlin?” Mrs. Sharma asked, her eyes wide with a mixture of disappointment and relief. “Afraid not,” I chuckled, “though I must admit, that’s one of the more creative diagnoses I’ve heard.” I explained to her the intricacies of trigeminal neuralgia and how this ‘suicide disease’, as it was grimly nicknamed, could cause excruciating pain with the slightest touch, a gentle breeze, or even a misplaced smile.
Mrs. Sharma, bless her resilient spirit, was not one to be defeated by a rogue nerve. She tried medications, injections, even acupuncture (which, she reported, made her feel like a “human pincushion”). But the pain persisted, a relentless tormentor that robbed her of joy, of sleep, of the simple pleasure of enjoying a good meal without feeling like her face was being electrocuted.
“Enough is enough,” she declared one day, marching into my clinic with the determination of a warrior queen. “I want that gremlin evicted, and I want it evicted now!”
And so, we embarked on the delicate and daring mission of microvascular decompression. Imagine, if you will, a microscopic stage where a skilled surgeon, armed with tiny instruments that could make a watchmaker weep with envy, performs a delicate ballet around the trigeminal nerve. The offending blood vessel, the villain of our story, is carefully teased away from the nerve, its pulsating tyranny silenced by a tiny Teflon cushion. It’s a procedure that requires the steady hand of a master craftsman, the nerves of a bomb disposal expert, and the patience of a saint who’s been stuck in traffic for three hours.
The operation was a success. The gremlin, evicted from its prime real estate on Mrs. Sharma’s face, was banished to the netherworld of neurological nuisances. And Mrs. Sharma? Oh, she was ecstatic!
“Doctor,” she exclaimed at her follow-up appointment, her eyes sparkling with unadulterated joy, “I can finally smile without fear! I can eat a samosa without feeling like I’m being attacked by a swarm of angry bees! I can even… gasp… sleep on my right side!”
Her recovery was nothing short of miraculous. She returned to her life with a vengeance, embracing every moment with a newfound zest. She joined a laughter club (“It’s the best therapy!” she declared), took up salsa dancing (“It’s good for the soul and the hips!”), and even started experimenting with spicy chutneys again (“This time,” she winked, “I’ll be the one tap-dancing!”). As for the gremlin? Well, let’s just say it learned its lesson and found a new hobby, far, far away from Mrs. Sharma’s radiant smile.
23 thoughts on “The fifth nerve”
“Your blog is a testament to the art of neurosurgery. The philosophical undertones add depth to the technical aspects of micro neurosurgery .
This excerpt is a wonderful blend of science and philosophy. Your insights into MVD for trigeminal neuralgia are enlightening.”
You are Inspiration for young neurosurgeons! Keep us inspiring sire 🫡
Great read as always doc
Amazing comparisons in medicine with day to day life.
Yogi Doc,
You’ve described yourself very aptly in the third para. What more could be said of your determination and skill?
Bless you!
Always the humble Dr Mazda.. You deserve the credit and prayers from many of us across the oceans🤲
Real treat to read your blogs …weekly dedicated Sunday mornings…Thats a great service to the patients to combat this dreadful menace of trigeminal neuralgia….god bless!
Great Dr.
Lovely write up Mazda..gremlins and all..salsa and tap dancing 💃
Gremlins..salsa..tap dancing 💃..great write up Mazda
I can imagine the pain of this disease and yourbproverbial skills which killed it. Mazda you are a magician
Can someone agree with me? It’s just combined writing / expression soup of I K Vijlivala and Sharad Thakar… A new edge narration with delicate clinical niche.. Being a neurosurgeon, it makes me fall for more…
Enjoyable read on a relaxed Sunday morning, brings a smile to one’s face yet intrigue and amazement too. And nostalgia ….gremlins …long forgotten entity ..a movie i really enjoyed as a kid
Superb execution and narration as always! Bravo Doctor!
Mazda the Magician.
Absolute treat – artistic narration of intricate science Mazda – you are truly blessed and in turn we are, too !
Trust you to transform a tale of trigeminal torment into a narrative masterpiece – where neurosurgery meets storytelling with flair.
Only you can make microvascular decompression sound like a heroic dance-off between a nerve and a gremlin.
Medicine with a soul and a smile 😊
Cheers to you for making my Sundays special
Dear doctor, agreat read as always. 5th nerve or whatever by reading ur article we understand it’s very difficult nature. As expected u healed Mrs sharma completely. Great.4
Great Dr 👏👏
One more masterpiece ! Superb Mazda !
Curing and healing so many . May you be blessed abundantly!
Dr Mazda, you are amazing…calms our nerves with such wit & light hearted scripts. Your pen & your sword battle for which is mightier 😘😘 Stay Blessed🙏
We all have gremlins Mazda so good 😊 you could sort this one out 😀
Enjoyed your blog. Came out with a grin on my face .
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