Objective: Demonstrate the effectiveness of the percutaneous microcompression of the Gasserian ganglion with the balloon of Fogarty in the surgical treatment of trigeminal neuralgia.
Patients and methods: There was realized a descriptive retrospective and prospective study of 24 patients with trigeminal neuralgia treated surgically by the technique of percutaneous microcompression of the Gasserian ganglion with the balloon of Fogarty in the Clinics Maison de Santé between January 2005 until December 2009. The medical records and operative reports were review and the data were grouped according to study variables.
Results: The 66.7% of patients were female. The mean ages for the patients were 63.1 +/- 11.9 years and the average time of the disease was 8.1 +/- 4.8 years. The right side of the face was the most affected in 70.8%, and the trigeminal branches most affected were the combination of the second and third at 50%. The mean operating time was less than 30 minutes. In 91.7% of patients had no facial pain after surgery and no recurrence at one year by 83.3%. 
Conclusions: The percutaneous microcompression of the Gasserian ganglion with the balloon of Fogarty is a highly effective technique in the surgical treatment in patients with trigeminal neuralgia.