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HEADACHES
Dr. DARROW'S RADIO SHOW
HIGHLIGHTS....
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.
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