mercredi 12 juin 2013

Botox For Migraines

By Cali Marinaw


In recent times, the uses for botulinum toxin treatments has increased significantly. Not only do clinics offer patients options to enhance their appearance using botox, there are other disorders that are treatable this way as well, including muscle spasticity. In the recent past, its use has now been extended to treating migraines.

Here, we will be discussing how botox injections can now be utilized for this purpose.

The origins of using this treatment for migraines

Paralyzation occurs in the muscles due to botox injections, and because of this, the muscles stay in a relaxed position as they don't receive the nerve signals. It is produced by Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium. The main usage is for muscles different parts of the eyes, face and body to be relaxed, which will increase muscle tone and make the general muscle function be improved.

Botox for migraine treatments

The release of the neuro-chemical serotonin is the main way for migraines to be mediated. This is not affected by botox, however, patients notice a decrease in pain from migraines after having the treatments.

While this is exciting news, it is still under investigation and there does not appear to be a clear reason as to how it can help reduce migraine headaches. There are 31 to 39 different injection points in the scalp for botox. The basic theories that have been presented so far:

Number one would be that pain signals in nerves are blocked by these injections.

Then, the blood pressure in the brain is reduced by the scalp muscles being relaxed.

Patients are reporting less headaches, and less severe when they occur, although the research to document this is still ongoing at this time.

If other treatment methods are not effective for a patient and they have at least 15 days a month of migraines, this is when botox injections are typically suggested by a medical professional. There is another condition that migraine sufferers sometimes are face with at times called analgesic overuse headaches, which are caused by the overuse of painkiller medication.

Each patient is different, so in cases where botox is administered 2 times and the patient has no benefit then other options should be considered, but if it makes headaches occur less than 15 days per month, this is another signal of success.

Any risks?

It's possible to have an allergic reaction or some neck pain from botox treatment, but that only happens to a tiny percentage of patients.

Synopsis

Botox injections are still relatively new when it comes to treatment for migraines, but it is gaining in popularity. It's looking good for the future of botox for treating chronic migraine symptoms, but more studies need to be done to have more conclusive evidence.




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