Are you having headaches or migraines that are unresponsive to medical treatment?
Have you tried treating your headaches and migraine symptoms without success, with any of the following treatments:
- migraine medications,
- diet changes,
- massage,
- chiropractic,
- injections,
- Botox,
- nerve ablations,
- and traditional physical therapy?
If so, you are like many people who are having challenges reducing their headache and migraine.
At the American Headache Institute (AHI) we look to the neck as the underlying source for headache and migraine pain.
Medical treatment of headaches and migraines typically involves the use of medication for symptom management. We opened AHI in Rochester Hills, MI over 11 years ago because of the many headache sufferers who do not find relief with traditional medical management.
We have been able to help many people by addressing the neck as the root cause of their headaches and migraines.
The following is a review of the scientific literature that will help us answer the following question:
Can the neck produce headaches, migraines, and pain in the face and head?
“Yes,” say the following researchers…
Dr. Bogduk
Dr. Bogduk injected pain-free volunteers with an irritating chemical at different levels of the cervical spine. The volunteers then reported where they felt the pain. They reported having pain that migrated (referred) into in their eyes, forehead, temples, TMJ, ears, and neck.
“Convergence between cervical afferents allows for upper cervical pain to be referred to regions of the head. Such patterns of referral have been elicited in healthy volunteers by experimental, noxious stimulation of cervical structures.”
Dr. Bogduk
Dr Cooper
Dr. Cooper injected patients that were having head pain at 3 different levels of the cervical spine with a pain-relieving substance. He then measured the amount of pain reduction patients reported from the injections. The chart below demonstrates the location and the amount of pain reduction the patients experienced.
“Complete relief of headache after such blocks, under controlled conditions, provides objective evidence of a cervical source of pain.”
Dr. Cooper
Dr. Persson
Dr. Persson studied 275 patients that had cervical radiculopathy (pinched nerve with neck and arm pain). Of the 275 patients studied, 161 (60%) also suffered from daily or recurrent headache, most often on the same side of the neck and arm pain.
After performing a selective nerve block (anesthesia) on the “pinched nerve” 59% of patients had a reduction in headache pain. Of the 59% that had a reduction 69% of those patients had complete relief of their headaches.
“A significant correlation was seen between reduced headache intensity and reduced pain in the neck, arm, and shoulder.”
Dr. Persson
Dr. Calhoun
Dr. Calhoun studied the prevalence of neck pain in migraine compared to the prevalence of nausea (one of migraine’s defining symptoms). Patients reported the presence or absence of nausea, as well as the intensity of both neck and headache pain, while they were having a migraine. The data concluded that neck pain was more common than nausea at the time of the migraine. The study also found that the prevalence of neck pain increased as the migraines became more chronic in presentation.
“My advice to migraineurs is to mention any neck pain when consulting with a healthcare professional and to consider neck pain as part of the migraine disorder until proven otherwise.”
Dr. Calhoun
Dr. Biondi, DO
Dr. Biondi performed a review of the clinical presentation of cervicogenic headache, its diagnostic evaluation, and treatment strategies.“Of 50 migraine patients 64% reported neck pain associated with their migraine attack, with 93% experiencing neck symptoms during the headache phase. Differences in neck posture and pronounced levels of neck muscle tenderness were observed in subjects with migraine, tension-type headache, or a combination of both, but not in a non-headache control group”.
Find Headache & Migraine Relief Today!
When patients address migraines and headaches with their physician, the cervical spine is generally not considered. The researchers above say differently, and our experience is that, for the vast majority of headache and migraine sufferers, the neck proves to be responsible for most or all of their pain.
Our patient Google reviews support this scientific claim with over 50 written reviews (as of September 2021) and the highest rating of any headache/migraine clinic in the country at 4.9/5.0.
The American Headache Institute was established in Rochester Hills, MI over 11 years ago, aiming to give relief to a group of patients who are desperately needing help. If you are struggling with headaches and have not considered your neck as part of the problem, consider American Headache Institute.
Contact us to set up a free consultation, or an initial evaluation to get started on reducing your headaches today!
References
- N. Bogduk, Govind J. Cervicogenic headache: and assessment of the evidence on clinical diagnosis, invasive tests, and treatment. Lancet Neurol. 2009; 10:959-68.
- Cooper G, Bailey B, Bogduk N. Cervical zygapophysial joint pain maps. Pain Medicine 2007; 8: 344-53
- Persson L, MD, et al. Headache in patients with cervical radiculopathy: a prospective study with selective nerve root blocks in 275 patients. Eur Spine J 2007; 16:953-59.
- Calhoun A, MD, et al. The prevalence of neck pain in migraine. Headache. 2010 Sep;50(8):1273-7.
- D. Biondi, DO. Cervicogenic headache: Diagnostic evaluation and treatment strategies. Pain Management Rounds Harvard Medical School & Massachusetts General Hospital, 2004; vol. 1, issue 8.
Tags: headaches, migraines, headache, migraine, neck pain, pain relief, health and wellness
