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Diagnosis

Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) can present similarly to TN, and differentiating between these conditions can be difficult. Even suspected TN patients who experience brief attacks of sharp pain have had their symptoms resolve after being treated for TMD. TMD pain can also be triggered by movements of the tongue or facial muscles, so TN must be differentiated from masticatory pain by differentiating between the clinical characteristics of deep somatic pain and neuropathic pain. Masticatory pain will not be arrested by a conventional mandibular local anesthetic block. One quick test a dentist might perform is a conventional inferior dental local anesthetic block. If the pain is in the treated branch, the block will not arrest masticatory pain but will alleviate TN pain.