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A father with a rare condition which left him in agonising pain at the slightest touch has kissed his wife for the first time in four years - after having a piece of his skull removed.Mark Steadman, 38, was unable to go outside or wash his face after being diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia (TN) in 2009.
The condition - which affects 12 out of every 100,000 people in the UK each year - leaves sufferers with pain in their face which is so bad more than a quarter commit suicide.
Mark Steadman, 38, is able to kiss his wife, Louise, and children for the first time in four years after having surgery to cure his agonising face and teeth pains
It is caused by pressure on the trigeminal nerve - the largest nerve inside the skull.
The father-of-three was left in such agony even the slightest kiss or breath of wind on his skin felt like he had been ‘hit by lightning’.
He was forced to take a cocktail of powerful painkillers, including morphine, which left him in a zombie-like state. But he has now been able to kiss his wife Louise, 35, for the first time since 2009 after he had a 10p sized piece of his skull removed.
During the six-hour operation at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital on September 3, surgeons removed a piece of his skull in order to gain access to the nerve which they then wrapped in Teflon.
The treatment is expected to mean Mr Steadman, a probation service officer, remains pain-free for the next decade when he will have to undergo another operation.
Mr Steadman (pictured with his wife and son, Leon, four) had trigeminal neuralgia - a condition caused by pressure being put on the largest nerve in the skull. It caused him to suffer bouts of extreme pain up to 250 times a day. The pain could be triggered by the slightest touch - including a kiss from his wife
Mr Steadman, of Kidderminster, Worcestershire, said: ‘The surgery has transformed my life - I cannot say how wonderful it is to kiss Louise and my kids again.
‘Even though I’ve had part of my skull removed it’s worth it to be able to be a normal dad and husband again.
‘It was horrible being in the same house as my family and not be able to show them affection because I knew the pain would be so awful.
‘The disease destroyed my life - the pain is so debilitating you can’t do anything.
‘Once I was at my parents’ house for dinner and before the spoon even got to my mouth I was on the floor in agony.
Mr Steadman had surgery at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital to remove part of his skull and have his trigeminal nerve wrapped in Teflon - he has been pain-free ever since the operation on September 3
Mr Steadman said: 'The surgery has transformed my life - I cannot say how wonderful it is to kiss Louise and my kids again'
‘It feels like you have been hit in the face with a bolt of lightning, or at its worse like a whole thunder storm has hit you.
‘There were up to 250 attacks a day.
‘Sometimes the pain would drop me to my knees- other times it would feel like all of my teeth on the right hand side were just on fire.
‘The only treatments were to take 50 pills a day, and they just left me like a zombie. I was just sat in my chair completely zoned out.
‘If I needed to go to the toilet I needed someone to walk in front of me so I didn’t bump into things.
Mr Steadman (pictured after his operation) was in so much pain that he had to take 50 painkillers a day, including morphine. He says the drugs left him in a zombie-like state
‘They had to take away the medication and let my wife look after it because the temptation to take another pill to help ease the pain is too much.’
Mr Steadman explained that the problem started in 2009 with a pain in his teeth.
He went to the dentist and was told the pain was caused by him grinding his teeth in the night but his wife said that he never did that.
Mr Steadman then went to his GP who also believed that grinding his teeth could be the problem.
Mr Steadman said: ‘I felt like I was almost cracking up, I knew there was a problem but no-one seemed to know.
Mr Steadman said: 'It feels like you have been hit in the face with a bolt of lightning, or at its worse like a whole thunder storm has hit you. There were up to 250 attacks a day'
‘It’s been a real battle, you spend your whole life trying to avoid the pain. It could be the gentlest of breath or a kiss off my wife and kids.
‘I would get up in the morning and look outside and see the trees blowing and stand there in absolute panic saying “I can’t go out”.’
The couple, who have three children James, 15, Emily, 13, and four-year-old Leon, got married seven years ago.
Mrs Steadman, a full-time mother and Mr Steadman’s carer, said: ‘The condition was a nightmare for us. Mark had to sleep downstairs.
‘We’ve been together for 18 years but married seven years ago so basically for more than half our married life together I wasn’t able to kiss my husband.
Mr Steadman is now expected to be free from pain for about ten years after which he may require more surgery to prevent the pain returning
‘I cannot describe how good it is to have my husband back. I can’t stop kissing Mark now.’
Shockingly, trigeminal neuralgia is known as the ‘Suicide Disease’ because 27 per cent of sufferers kill themselves because they are unable to bear the pain.
Professor Hugh Coakham, a neurosurgeon at the privately-run Spire Hospital in Bristol, and expert in the condition, said: ‘Research suggests the pain is caused by a blood vessel pressing against the trigeminal nerve and wearing away the nerve’s protective myelin sheath.
‘Sufferers experience these horrible electric shock-like feelings.
‘It mostly affects middle-aged and older people. This may be because blood vessels become gnarled and twisted with age, encroach over the nerve and wear down the insulating sheath.’
WHAT IS TRIGEMINAL NEURALGIA?
Trigeminal neuralgia is a sudden and severe facial nerve pain - the pain is so severe that it drives many sufferers to suicide. As a result, it has been dubbed the 'suicide disease'.
The pain has been described as like a stabbing or piercing pain.
Each attack lasts for between a few seconds and two minutes.
The pain usually only affects one side of the face - most commonly the right side.
Triggers include talking, smiling, chewing, touch, swallowing and a cool breeze.
In 80 to 90 per cent of patients the pain is caused by pressure on the trigeminal nerve - the largest nerve in the skull.
The condition affects four or five people out of every 100,000.
Almost twice as many women as men are affected.
It is most common in people between the ages of 60 and 70 and is very rare in under 40s.
There is no cure for the condition which usually gets worse over tim
The pain has been described as like a stabbing or piercing pain.
Each attack lasts for between a few seconds and two minutes.
The pain usually only affects one side of the face - most commonly the right side.
Triggers include talking, smiling, chewing, touch, swallowing and a cool breeze.
In 80 to 90 per cent of patients the pain is caused by pressure on the trigeminal nerve - the largest nerve in the skull.
The condition affects four or five people out of every 100,000.
Almost twice as many women as men are affected.
It is most common in people between the ages of 60 and 70 and is very rare in under 40s.
There is no cure for the condition which usually gets worse over tim
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