Subscribe to New York Headache blog

Acupuncture for the treatment of migraines has been studied in dozens of clinical trials. A 2012 study mentioned in a previous blog post described a rigorous trial done in 480 patients with highly positive results. The largest, albeit uncontrolled study...

About 6% of young children suffer from migraine headaches. After puberty, this number triples to 18% in girls and remains at 6% in boys. Several abortive drugs (drugs taken as needed), such as rizatriptan (Maxalt) and zolmitriptan (Zomig)...

Medical marijuana was legalized in New York in February of this year. Since then, I’ve prescribed it to over 30 patients and about a third of them have found it to be effective. We are planning an observational study to determine which...

We are big proponents of non-drug treatments, including a variety of vitamins, minerals, and herbal supplements. However, potential liver damage by butterbur is why we do not recommend this supplement, even though I was one...

Nausea is a very common symptom that accompanies migraine attacks. Effective treatment of migraine with a drug like sumatriptan often stops the headache, nausea, and other associated symptoms. However, sometimes pain...

Hypothyroidism, or under-active thyroid is known to cause headaches or worsen pre-existent migraines. Correcting this deficiency with medications such as Synthroid or Armour Thyroid often improves headaches...

Migraine with aura is known to be associated with an increased risk of diseases of arteries, such as strokes, heart attacks and diseases of peripheral blood vessels. This risk is further increased by estrogen-containing contraceptives...

One of the most common problems with Botox injections given for chronic migraines is that doctors use the standard protocol without adjusting the dose. One of my patients is an 83 year old woman with chronic migraines who has...

Medical marijuana reduces the number of prescriptions written by doctors, according to a recent study published in Health Affairs. The researchers at the University of Georgia in Athens looked at all prescriptions filled by Medicare participants...

CGRP migraine drugs remain on track to get an approval from the FDA within two years. My first post on these drugs appeared in 2007. The first product in this family was tested for the prevention and acute treatment of migraines...

Vitamin B12 was the subject of an article in the New York Times by Jane Brody entitled, Vitamin B12 as Protection for the Aging Brain. However, she mentions that “insufficient absorption of B12 from foods may even be common among...

Living in areas where fracking takes place doubles the risk of having migraines, as well as fatigue and sinus symptoms. Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is a water-based method of extracting natural gas from deep under the ground...

Three times as many women are afflicted by migraines as men, according to many large studies. However, 6% of men do suffer from migraines and that means 9 million American men. However, in our clinic, instead of 75%, over 90%...

Intravenous magnesium relieves acute migraine attacks in patients with magnesium deficiency, which is present in half of migraine sufferers, according to the study we published in 1995 in the journal Clinical Science...

Recently, a patient of mine reported that cramp bark has significantly improved her menstrual migraines. Cramp bark is a common shrub with red berries. Its bark has been used for over 100 years for muscle cramps, menstrual...

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) with an electrode implanted in the neck is an FDA-approved treatment for depression and epilepsy, when these conditions do not respond to medications. Since antidepressant and anti-epilepsy medications...

Menopause often brings relief to female migraine sufferers. However, many women have worsening of their migraines during the transition. This is thought to be due to the fluctuating levels of estrogen, which is also responsible...

Several of my patients with trigeminal neuralgia (TN) responded to Botox injection (although some have not). My previous post on this topic four years ago discussed a study involving 40 patients with TN, of whom 68% responded to Botox...

An ENT colleague recently referred to me a patient with very persistent sensation of pressure in her sinuses. She’d had sinus surgery which relieved pain in one of her sinuses, but the pressure sensation persisted...

If you are interested in learning to meditate, but don’t know how to get started, go to Dr. Tara Brach’s website for help. It offers her free weekly podcasts that will guide you through the process. Tara Brach is a psychologist and a buddhist, who after...

It was a great privilege to know Elie Wiesel, survivor of Auschwitz, Nobel Peace Prize winner, author of 40 books, university professor, and most importantly, a tireless campaigner for human rights. Mr. Wiesel suffered from severe...

Tremor of the hands is usually a benign condition. It is even called, benign essential tremor or, if it runs in the family, benign familial tremor. Patients with tremor are twice as likely to have migraines, so this is why I am writing about it...

A new report presented at the last annual scientific meeting of the American Headache Society in San Diego showed that post-concussion symptoms can be helped by an intravenous infusion of magnesium. Doctors at the department of neurology...

Should you sleep on the right or on the left side? Researchers led by Dr. Helene Benveniste of Stony Brook University discovered that sleeping on the right side provides better drainage of toxins out of the brain, at least in rats...

Medication overuse headache (MOH), which is sometimes called rebound headache, is included in the International Classification of Headache Disorders. However, this is one of several headache types whose existence is still debated. However, this is one...

Chronic migraine afflicts more than 4 million Americans, but shockingly less than 5% of them receive appropriate care, according to a new study just published in the journal Headache. Chronic migraine sufferers experience headaches on...

Zecuity, a transdermal sumatriptan patch has been reported to cause skin burns and scarring, according to the FDA. The FDA has started an investigation, but the manufacturer, Teva Pharmaceuticals has decided to pull the...

Hemiplegic and basilar migraine are rare types of migraine. Hemiplegic migraine is accompanied by a paralysis of one side of the body. Basilar migraine derives its name from the basilar artery, which supplies blood to the brainstem...

Post-concussion symptoms have long been thought to be more severe and prolonged in people who have pre-existing psychological problems. This has been shown to be the case in the military personnel. A new study confirmed this observation...

Intravenous magnesium infusions may not be as safe in pregnant women as it has been always thought. The FDA recently moved intravenous magnesium from category A into category D (see category definitions below). This came about after the FDA...