Corvallis Chiropractic Beats Massage for Cervicogenic Headaches

We see a large number of people with headaches in our Corvallis office, and Dr. Lach has been able to support many of them. Additionally, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that 50 percent of all adults deal with some kind of headache disorder, so this actually isn’t surprising. One of the most prevalent kinds of headaches which our patients are afflicted with is cervicogenic headache which, fortunately, chiropractic can often help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Defined

A cervicogenic headache is one that starts from a problem in the cervical spine. It can easily be due to a problem with either the spine itself (in particular, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it can be brought on by a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This problem in your spine brings about constriction or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can result in headache pain.

How can you know if the headache you are going through is a cervicogenic headache? Aside from obtaining a diagnosis from a healthcare specialist, a frequent 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.

Headache Relief with Chiropractic

Seeing that cervicogenic headaches will not subside until whatever problem is initiating them is remedied, it is vital to receive treatment instead of just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent solution, and one that provides a considerable amount of relief.

In one study published in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, specialists evaluated 80 people who had regular cervicogenic headaches. One-half received chiropractic care and the other half engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was examined 12 and 24 weeks after the treatment and it was found that chiropractic delivered the best results.

In particular, this study revealed that chiropractic adjustments provided patients more significant pain relief and decreased the frequency of headaches that occurred. In addition to that, it also diminished the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Dr. Lach 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/