Rutland Chiropractic Beats Massage for Cervicogenic Headaches

We see a large number of people with headaches in our Rutland office, and Dr. Cyr has been able to provide relief for many of them. For that matter, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that one half of all adults have a problem with some sort of headache problems, so this actually isn’t a surprise. One of the most prevalent types of headaches that our patients deal with is cervicogenic headache which, luckily, chiropractic can usually help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Defined

A cervicogenic headache is one that stems from a problem in the cervical spine. It might be generated by a condition with either the spine itself (primarily, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it might be because of a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This dysfunction in your spine creates compression or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can bring on headache pain.

How do you find out if the headache you are suffering from is a cervicogenic headache? Aside from being given a diagnosis from a healthcare specialist, a common symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or discomfort in your neck. This is occasionally coupled 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 corrected, it is crucial to get 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 reported in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, researchers looked at 80 people who had repeated cervicogenic headaches. One-half got chiropractic care and the other 50% engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was examined 12 and 24 weeks after the procedures and it was found that chiropractic delivered the optimum effects.

Specifically, this study uncovered that chiropractic adjustments gave patients better pain relief and reduced the frequency of headaches that occurred. In addition to that, it also minimized the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

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