Blink reflex: A practical test to evaluate the trigeminal nerve injury following percutaneous balloon compression for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia

To evaluate the blink reflex (BR) in estimating the potential injury of trigeminal nerve following percutaneous balloon compression (PBC) surgery, and to determine the association between BR alterations and early surgical outcomes.In this single-center, prospective before-and-after study, a total of 74 patients who had primary trigeminal neuralgia and scheduled for PBC between October 2020 and June 2021 were prospectively included. BR testing and facial sensory assessment were performed pre- and post-PBC. The latency and the area under the curve (AUC) of pre- and postoperative R1 (R1The BR components were noticeably delayed or diminished following PBC. R1Both R1 and R2 were significantly diminished after PBC and these alterations were associated with early surgical outcomes, suggesting that the BR is useful in evaluating trigeminal injury following PBC and could provide objective information about early prognosis.