Agassiz Chiropractic Beats Massage for Cervicogenic Headaches

We see a considerable number of individuals with headaches in our Agassiz office, and Dr. Henke has been able to aid many of them. Actually, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that 50 percent of all adults have difficulty with some type of headache disorder, so this actually isn’t a surprise. One of the most frequent types of headaches which our patients have problems with is cervicogenic headache which, luckily, chiropractic can generally help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Explained

A cervicogenic headache is one that comes from problems in the cervical spine. It might be generated by a condition with either the spine itself (in particular, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it may be attributed to a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This problem in your spine leads to constriction or aggravation of the spinal nerves, which can bring about headache pain.

How can you distinguish if the headache you are being affected by is a cervicogenic headache? Besides obtaining a diagnosis from a healthcare expert, a common symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or discomfort in your neck. This is occasionally combined with pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.

How Chiropractic Helps with Cervicogenic Headaches

Because cervicogenic headaches will not go away until whatever issue is inducing them is remedied, it is vital to receive treatment as opposed to just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent approach, and one that offers a considerable amount of headache pain relief.

In one study reported in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, specialists followed 80 people who had frequent cervicogenic headaches. Half of them got chiropractic care and the other fifty percent engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was assessed 12 and 24 weeks after the procedures and it was found that chiropractic provided the best results.

In particular, this study found that chiropractic adjustments gave patients more pain relief and decreased the frequency of headaches that occurred. Furthermore, it also mitigated the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Dr. Henke can do for you and your headaches, call our office 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/