The Tamesis
Percutaneous balloon compression (PBC) is an intravenous treatment option.
The Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine of The University of Hong Kong (HKUMed) and Queen Mary Hospital (QMH) have launched percutaneous balloon compression (PBC) as an intravenous treatment option for patients with chronic orofacial pain.
PBC surgery involves inserting a small balloon through the cheek into the trigeminal ganglion near the base of the skull and inflating it with contrast material to gently compress the nerve’s pain fibers, according to the University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Medicine.
It added that the ballooning appearance of the face and fluoroscopic imaging confirmed the correct positioning of the surgery.
“Thanks to the introduction of PBC, patients who are unable or unwilling to undergo more invasive procedures now have a promising alternative for pain management,” Dr. Wong Siu-ching, clinical associate professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Faculty of Clinical Medicine, HKU, said in a statement.
Dr. Huang Xiuqing added that traditional treatment methods for orofacial pain often involve the use of neuropathic analgesics, but some patients have poor relief and side effects, and the success rate is variable.
Dr. Chen Zhirong, consultant in anesthesia, pain and perioperative medicine at QMH, said the traditional technique uses radiofrequency ablation (RFA).
HKUMed and QMH stated that international data and local experience confirm that the initial pain relief rate of PBC reaches more than 80%, which is comparable to RFA.
They add that more than 70% of patients remain pain-free after 10 years, making PBC a reliable option for continued pain relief.
