Cluster Headaches, Migranes, Causes, and Treatments

HEADACHES
Discussions from our Radio Show:

Dr. Darrow: There are so many different types of headaches, and it is very difficult for anybody to figure out what category a headache will fit into. When we get patients in our clinic, we hear everybody say that they have migraine headaches, but they are not really migraine headaches. There are tension type headaches, inflammatory headaches, people get headaches from sinus infections, they get headaches from neck problems, from TMJ.

There is also something that is so strange to me, its called a “rebound headache”. When people take a lot of anti-inflammatory medications to help them with their headaches, guess what happens to them when they stop taking the medications? They get terrible headaches!

We also know that there are caffeine headaches. Many people are addicted to caffeine and if they don’t have caffeine quick enough in the morning, they get headaches.

We treat headaches with Prolotherapy (but not while they are flared up) and trigger points–while the headaches are flared up. Trigger Points are also injections, like Prolotherapy. We use very small, fine needles so the injections don’t hurt. We put these injections into the back and neck at spots that are triggering the headaches. For instance:

I had a patient come in with his wife and he had what I would consider a “cluster headache,” you know a series of headaches. His complaint was that it felt like he had a hot poker in his eye. I said to him, “Do you mind if I feel your back and neck?” And he said, “Why do you want to do that? I have a headache!” And I said, “If I could find the cause of your headache, I can get rid of it.” So I found the spot (in the upper back muscle) right next to his neck that was the trigger for his headache pain. When I pressed it…the pain in his eye got worse. My red flag went up and I said to him, “I think I can help you.”

I am always looking for the underlying causes that are causing the headaches. Most headaches no matter what the cause, no matter what you call them, migraine, cluster, etc., many times they come from the musculoskeletal imbalance in the back or the neck and if we can treat these areas of instability, with trigger points, with Prolotherapy. Then we can beat these headaches.

We also have something called Med X and that is a muscle strengthener. We can get rid of a lot of headaches by building up the muscles back there. You know we have terrible posture these days. How many of us sit at a desk? We get up and down overstretching and weakening muscles that are trying to compensate for bad posture. So we want to strengthen these muscles.

So, we want to get people off the medications. A lot of these medications for headaches really don’t handle the problem. We want to know what are the underlying reasons for headaches.

Although the common headache usually responds quite well to aspirin or other over-the-counter medications, those who’ve experienced the torment of migraines or cluster headaches are often frustrated by the lack of any effective cure. Drugs developed specifically for such headaches are effective, but the relief they provide is temporary. Until the root of the problem is unearthed and corrected, the headaches will persist, and prolonged drug therapy to relieve them will be necessary, along with the possibility of addiction.

In rare cases, the problem is traced to cysts or brain tumors, but more often it is related to muscular or ligamentary tension. Most people know the phrase tension headache but not many–doctors included–are aware that neck ligaments refer pain directly to the head. In cases where no cyst or tumor is found but headaches persist, Prolotherapy may be in order.

A physician skilled in diagnosing trigger points and recognizing referred pain signals should be consulted in such cases.

Usually after a surgery, then another surgery, the you start getting pretty close to arthritis.

The good news is that the knee is the fastest part of the body to heal. We have had so many knees limp in with bone-on-bone arthritis, ready for surgery, and they are pain-free now.