Chiropractic Beats Massage for Cervicogenic Headaches

We see a large number of individuals with headaches in our Mt Sterling office, and Linton Spine & Joint Chiropractic Center has been able to assist many of them. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 50 percent of all adults deal with some sort of headache problems, so this actually isn't unexpected. One of the most typical kinds of headaches which our patients deal with is cervicogenic headache which, luckily, chiropractic therapy can usually help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Defined

A cervicogenic headache is one that arises from problems in the cervical spine. It could be because of an issue with either the spine itself (primarily, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it can be attributed to a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This dysfunction in your spine results in compaction or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can bring about headache problems.

How do you know if the headache you are experiencing is a cervicogenic headache? Apart from obtaining a diagnosis from a healthcare specialist, a common symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or discomfort in your neck. This is occasionally associated with pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.

How Chiropractic Helps

Seeing that cervicogenic headaches will not subside until whatever problem is inducing them is corrected, it is important to receive treatment instead of just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent approach, and one that provides a great deal of headache pain relief.

In one study reported in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, experts studied 80 people who had recurring cervicogenic headaches. Fifty percent were given chiropractic care and the other half underwent light massage therapy. Each participant was assessed 12 and 24 weeks after the procedures and it was found that chiropractic offered the optimum outcomes.

Specifically, this study noted that chiropractic adjustments offered patients more significant pain relief and decreased the frequency of headaches that occurred. In addition to that, it also mitigated the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Linton Spine & Joint Chiropractic Center 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/