Facial Numbness and Paresthesias Resolved with Anterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion: A Report of 3 Cases.

CASE: We report 3 patients with classic trigeminal neuropathy (TN) findings, which were due to compressive cervical radiculopathy, and provide a brief anatomic explanation for this association. In each case, left-sided disk herniation between the C5 and C7 levels caused TN and classic (dermatome appropriate) cervical radicular findings, all of which resolved with anterior cervical decompression and fusion (ACDF).

CONCLUSIONS

To our knowledge, this is the first report of TN caused by radicular compression in the caudal subaxial (C5-C7) cervical spine, which resolved after ACDF.