Migraines are a debilitating neurological disorder characterized by abnormal brain activity. But does the disorder start in the brain?
The Headache Institute of Texas presented results on the effectiveness of our neck-targeted approach to headache care at the American Headache Society 60th Annual Scientific Meetings in June 2018.
Our study1 showed that the percentage of our patients who have a 50% or greater reduction in migraine days per month in response to a therapeutic neck exercise program is significantly higher than the migraine reduction that is achieved with all but one of the commonly prescribed migraine preventative medications. This includes the most recent brain-targeted, expensive, injectable, human monoclonal antibody CGRP receptor blocking migraine preventatives. The one migraine preventative medication with similar results to our treatment’s ability to reduce migraine days has the disadvantage of both side effects (memory impairment, kidney stones, numbness and tingling in hands and feet) as well as ongoing prescription costs.
Our patients are able to avoid both medication side effects as well as ongoing prescription costs as they learn to permanently reduce and eliminate their migraines.
Our second study is currently in the design phase. When the study is complete and results become available, we hope that they will lend even more compelling evidence on the effectiveness of our treatment approach, and that they will achieve two further goals. First, that they will stimulate collaborative efforts aimed at elucidating more precisely the details of anatomy and physiology that explain the headache improvements we witness as a result of treating our patient’s necks. And second, that a non-invasive, non-pharmacological approach to alleviating migraines and other forms of head and face pain will gain the recognition and acceptance that it deserves.
1. Holt, N.L., Kurka, C. Migraine Frequency and Severity Decrease in Response to a Therapeutic Neck Exercise Program in a Case Series of Migraineurs. Headache. 2018; 58, 189.
The Headache Institute of Texas published a case study demonstrating the effectiveness of our neck-targeted approach to headache care in resolving migraines in a teenaged patient.
A literature review reveals that neck pain is more commonly associated with migraine than is nausea, that reduced neck muscle function and reduced cervical range of motion is present in migraineurs that is not documented in those without migraine, and that there is pharmacological overlap in the treatment response of migraine and neck pain associated with migraine.
For those who are interested in the growing body of medical research that documents the ability of neck conditions to cause head and face pain, we have prepared a list of discussion points supported by citations from the medical literature.