San Angelo Chiropractic and Cervicogenic Headache

We see a considerable number of men and women with headaches in our San Angelo office, and Dr. Pittman has been able to support many of them. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that half of all adults struggle with some manner of headache problems, so this certainly isn’t a surprise. One of the most prevalent varieties of headaches that our patients struggle with is cervicogenic headache which, luckily, chiropractic can often help.

What is a Cervicogenic Headache?

A cervicogenic headache is one that arises from issues in the cervical spine. It can be because of a problem with either the spine itself (in particular, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it might be triggered by a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This problem in your spine leads to squeezing or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can bring about headache pain.

How do you tell if the headache you are feeling is a cervicogenic headache? Besides receiving a diagnosis from a healthcare specialist, a common symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or pain in your neck. This is sometimes combined with pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.

Headache Relief with Chiropractic

Since cervicogenic headaches will not go away until whatever problem is initiating them is remedied, it is important to get treatment instead of just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an effective solution, and one that offers a considerable amount of pain relief.

In one study published in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, researchers studied 80 people who had recurring cervicogenic headaches. One-half received chiropractic care and the other 50% engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was examined 12 and 24 weeks after the treatment and it was found that chiropractic provided the optimum effects.

Specifically, this study found that chiropractic adjustments provided patients greater pain relief and lowered the frequency of headaches that occurred. What's more, it also diminished the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Dr. Pittman can do for you and your headaches, call us today. We'll do our best to get you the pain relief you need!

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/