Injection therapy is often associated with cosmetic procedures and thought to be used solely for the purpose of smoothing wrinkles, but the reality is that it can also be an effective way to treat chronic migraines. In fact, it’s an FDA-approved treatment for chronic migraines, which means sufferers endure 15 or more migraine days per month.
Injection therapy uses a drug that is made from a neurotoxin produced by Clostridium botulinum. When this drug is injected, it weakens specific muscles and blocks specific nerves and pain signals.
It’s important to understand that migraines are not just bad headaches. To the contrary, they are a neurological disorder with unique neurological symptoms. While the exact causes of migraines are not yet fully understood, it is believed that a sensory pathway, called the trigeminovascular system, plays a role in causing the pain associated with migraine attacks. As a result, weakening muscles associated with this system has proven to be an effective way to decrease the pain that is experienced during a migraine attack. Injection therapy targets muscles in this system and as a result effectively blocks nerve signals and decreases the pain experienced by migraine sufferers.
Injection therapy is only recommended for chronic migraine sufferers that have not experienced relief from other migraine remedies including both abortive and preventative treatment. Further, the more migraines a patient suffers from, the more likely it is that injection therapy will provide relief.
During this procedure, patients receive injections around the sensory nerve fibers that play a part in the pain of migraine attacks. These injections block the release of pain signals and thus decrease pain. The typical migraine injection treatment involves 31 injections in seven specific areas of the head and neck. For most patients, one treatment will provide relief for about three months, and it often is not until the second treatment that patients experience the full effect of this procedure.
When done correctly by a professional, this type of treatment is very safe and has very few side effects. Serious side effects are rare and if patients experience any side effects at all, they are no more serious than droopy eyelids, localized bruising, a crooked smile, dry eyes, or flu-like symptoms.
If you are searching to find what helps migraines or what to do for a migraine, contact Glaser Pain Relief Center in Encino, California. After a thorough examination, our team will determine whether injection therapy is a good fit for you and will create a treatment plan to help minimize migraine pain and enable you to have more pain-free days every month.
