Decatur Chiropractic Beats Massage for Cervicogenic Headaches

We see a considerable number of men and women with headaches in our Decatur office, and Dr. Harrison has been able to help many of them. Furthermore, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that half of all adults struggle with some manner of headache problems, so this actually isn’t a surprise. One of the most typical varieties of headaches which our patients suffer from is cervicogenic headache which, luckily, chiropractic can generally help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Explained

A cervicogenic headache is one that starts from an issue in the cervical spine. It can easily be thanks to a condition with either the spine itself (in particular, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it might be a result of a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This dysfunction in your spine can cause compression or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can give you headache pain.

How do you find out if the headache you are feeling is a cervicogenic headache? Other than receiving a diagnosis from a healthcare professional, a common symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or pain in your neck. This is occasionally associated with pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.

Chiropractic to the Rescue

Since cervicogenic headaches will not go away until whatever problem is causing them is remedied, it is important to receive treatment rather than just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent solution, and one that provides a great deal of headache pain relief.

In one study released in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, experts looked at 80 people who had repeated cervicogenic headaches. One-half received chiropractic care and the other half underwent light massage therapy. Each participant was assessed 12 and 24 weeks after the treatment and it was found that chiropractic delivered the most beneficial effects.

In particular, this study uncovered that chiropractic adjustments gave patients more pain relief and reduced the number of headaches that occurred. On top of that, it also diminished the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Dr. Harrison can do for you and your headache pain, 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/