We see a considerable number of people with headaches in our South Buffalo office, and Dr. John Nowak has been able to support many of them. Of course, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 50% of all adults have difficulties with some sort of headache disorder, so this actually isn’t surprising. One of the most frequent kinds of headaches which our patients deal with is cervicogenic headache which, thankfully, chiropractic can generally help.
What is a Cervicogenic Headache?
A cervicogenic headache is one that arises from a problem in the cervical spine. It could be attributable to an issue with either the spine itself (in particular, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it could be due to a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This problem in your spine produces squeezing or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can give you headache pain.
How can you determine if the headache you are struggling with is a cervicogenic headache? Apart from obtaining a diagnosis from a healthcare specialist, a typical symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or pain in your neck. This is sometimes followed by pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.
Chiropractic to the Rescue
Seeing that cervicogenic headaches will not go away until whatever issue is generating them is remedied, it is essential to receive treatment as opposed to just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent solution, and one that can provide a great deal of pain relief.
In one study released in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, researchers looked at 80 people who had regular cervicogenic headaches. Half of them got chiropractic care and the other half engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was assessed 12 and 24 weeks after the procedures and it was found that chiropractic offered the most beneficial effects.
Specifically, this study uncovered that chiropractic adjustments provided patients more pain relief and lowered the frequency of headaches that occurred. On top of that, it also mitigated the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.
To find out what Dr. John Nowak can do for you and your headaches, call us today. We'll do our best to get you the pain relief you deserve!
References
- Haas M, Schneider M, Vavrek D. Illustrating risk difference and number needed to treat from a randomized controlled trial of spinal manipulation for cervicogenic headache. Chiropractic & Osteopathy 2010 18(9).
- World Health Organization. (2012, October). Headache disorders. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs277/en/
Posted Under
Posted By
