Headaches (HA) can be tremendously disabling, forcing sufferers away
from work or play into a dark, quiet room to minimize any noise and
light that intensifies the pain. According to the National Headache
Foundation, there are over 45 million Americans who suffer from chronic,
re-occurring headaches, of which 28 million are of the migraine
variety. Also, approximately 20% of children and adolescents deal with
headaches that can interfere significantly with their daily routines.
There are many different types of headaches and many sub-types within
the main categories. Here are a few: Tension HA (also, called
cervicogenic HA), migraine, mixed headache syndrome (a mixture of
migraine and tension HAs), cluster (less common but the most severe),
sinus headaches, acute headaches, hormone headaches, chronic progressive
headaches (traction or inflammatory HAs), and MANY more! Just “GOOGLE”
“headache classification” for the daunting list! Let’s take a look at
how chiropractic manages these headaches!
According to a study completed in 2005, a review of the published
literature revealed good evidence that intensity and frequency of HAs
are indeed helped by chiropractic intervention. They limited their
review to cervicogenic headaches and spinal manipulation and noted the
need for larger scale studies. The well-respected Cochrane database
reported spinal manipulation (SM) as an effective treatment option with
short-term benefits similar to amitriptyline, a commonly prescribed
medication for migraine HA patients.
For cervicogenic HA, the combination of neck exercises and SM was
found to be effective in both the short- and long-term, and SM was
superior to massage or placebo (sham or “fake” manipulation). Regarding
the question of treatment frequency of SM plus up to two modalities
(heat and soft tissue therapy), a preliminary study found that when
comparing patients receiving one, three, or four visits per week for
three weeks, those receiving 9-12 treatments during the three weeks had
the most benefit. Regarding the questions, “what is affected by SM” and,
“why does SM work” for cervicogenic HA patients, a study describes the
intimate relationship between the upper cervical nerve roots (C1-3), the
trigeminal (cranial nerve V), the spinal accessory (cranial nerve XI),
and the vascular system. Inflammation within these structures and their
relationship with the trapezius and SCM muscles help us understand the
“why” and “how” of SM and referred pain pattern to the face and head in
those with cervicogenic HAs. Realizing this is a bit “technical”, feel
free to GOOGLE these structures and you’ll appreciate the close
proximity they have to each other and how adjustments, or SM, applied to
the upper cervical spine can affect this region. It has also been
reported that SM and strengthening of the deep neck flexor muscles
benefits the cervicogenic HA patient. Many HA sufferers have
combinations of symptoms including dizziness, neck pain, concentration
“fog”, fatigue, and others, which were found to also respond to SM
applied to the upper cervical spine. One study reported a 36% reduction
in pain killer medication use in a group of cervicogenic headache
patients receiving SM but no reduction in the patient group receiving
soft-tissue therapy. The list of research studies goes on and on! So
WHAT are you waiting for? TRY CHIROPRACTIC for your headache
management!!!
We realize you have a choice in whom you consider for your health
care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our
service for those needs. If you, a friend, or family member requires
care for headaches, we would be honored to render our services.
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