ArticleActa neurochirurgica2025
Efficacy analysis of microvascular decompression and percutaneous balloon compression for trigeminal neuralgia secondary to vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia: a retrospective cohort study.
Article in Acta neurochirurgica, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Microvascular decompression for trigeminal neuralgia secondary to vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Acta neurochirurgica · 2026Pooled it
- How I do it: Endoscopic microvascular decompression with vertebral artery transposition for trigeminal neuralgia caused by vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia.Acta neurochirurgica · 2026Article
- Microvascular decompression for neurovascular compression syndromes secondary to vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia: a single-center retrospective analysis.Frontiers in surgery · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundTrigeminal neuralgia secondary to vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia (VBD-TN) poses a significant challenge in the surgical management of trigeminal neuralgia. This study aimed to evaluate and compare the therapeutic efficacy of microvascular decompression (MVD) and percutaneous balloon compression (PBC) in patients with VBD-TN.
methodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of consecutive VBD-TN patients treated at a tertiary hospital in China between September 2013 and August 2022. Participants were stratified by the intervention (MVD vs PBC), with systematic evaluation of postoperative pain control efficacy and complication rates.
resultsThis study enrolled 107 patients with VBD-TN, with a mean age of 64.8 ± 10.0 years and a mean follow-up duration of 3.9 ± 1.9 years. The cohort comprised 64 patients undergoing MVD and 43 receiving PBC. Both groups achieved excellent initial pain control (The Barrow Neurological Institute scoring system (BNI) pain score I or II). The recurrence (BNI Ⅲ, Ⅳ, Ⅴ) rates were 12.5% (8/64) in the MVD group versus 20.9% (9/43) in the PBC group (p = 0.242) at the last follow-up, showing no statistically significant difference. Early postoperative assessment revealed significantly higher incidences of trigeminal dysfunction including facial numbness, dry eye symptoms, and masticatory muscle weakness in the PBC group compared to the MVD group (p < 0.05 for all). Conversely, the MVD group demonstrated more diverse complications, with craniotomy-related adverse events including intracranial infection (4.7%), cerebrospinal fluid leakage (3.1%), and incision infection (3.1%), while cranial nerve complications comprised diplopia (3.1%), facial palsy (1.6%), hearing loss (7.8%), and tinnitus (9.4%). At the final follow-up, the PBC group exhibited significantly higher BNI numbness scores than the MVD group (p = 0.001). The PBC group showed advantages in healthcare utilization metrics, with significantly shorter postoperative hospital stays and lower hospitalization costs compared to the MVD group (p < 0.001).
conclusionsBoth MVD and PBC are safe and effective therapeutic options for VBD-TN. MVD is associated with higher hospitalization costs, prolonged hospital stays, and a greater incidence of cranial nerve complications, though most of these complications are treatable. The main disadvantage of PBC lies in the long-term facial numbness.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.