New York Headache blog

We always try to use one preventive drug or Botox for the treatment of frequent or very severe migraine headaches. However, it is not unusual to go through several drugs and not find one which works well and does not cause side effects. Under...

Vertigo is a common complaint of migraine patients. Ear-nose-throat specialists at the University of Pisa examined 22 patients with migraine headaches who complained of vertigo and 22 who did not, as well as 22 control subjects without migraines...

Many migraine sufferers complain of dizziness, fatigue, exercise intolerance, blurred or tunnel vision, diminished concentration, tremulousness, nausea and recurrent syncope (fainting). These symptoms are often attributed to anxiety or panic...

Occipital nerve stimulation has been under investigation for the treatment of difficult to treat migraine headaches for the past several years with promising results. A recent study at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, AZ suggests that this treatment...

It is very exciting to finally have two published studies (PREEMPT 1 and PREEMPT 2) which provide definitive proof that Botox is effective for chronic migraine headaches. More than 15 years ago a plastic surgeon in California, Bill Binder reported...

A recent study by Dr. Bigal and his colleagues just published in Neurology compared more than 6,000 migraine sufferers with over 5,000 matched control subjects without migraines. They discovered that people with migraine with aura and to a lesser...

Some headaches, usually migraines, do not respond to the usual over-the-counter and even prescription headache medications. Once it is clear that there is no serious underlying cause, such as an aneurysm, several injectable medications can be given...

During pregnancy, two thirds of women stop having migraine headaches. However, one third continues to have them, and sometimes even worsen during pregnancy. As a general rule, only acetaminophen (Tylenol) is considered safe, but for most migraine...

There are several effective preventive medications for migraine headaches, however they are prescribed to only a small number of people who could benefit from them. A study by Dr. Richard Lipton in the journal Cephalagia and his colleagues...

Large clinical trials are required to prove that a new drug or treatment is effective. Without such proof doctors will not (and should not) believe that any particular medicine or device is effective. The FDA also approves drugs by evaluating...

Migraine and migraine medications do not appear to cause cognitive decline, according to a Dutch study just published in Headache. After 6 years of follow-up there was no difference between those who suffered from migraines and healthy...

One of the oldest preventive headache medications for migraines is propranolol (Inderal), which belongs to the family of blood pressure medications called beta-blockers. There are newer and better beta-blockers, such as nebivolol (Bystolic), which...

74% of girls and 52% of boys have headaches at age 17, according to a Finnish study of 6,262 twins. At age 11, 60% of girls and 59% of boys had headaches at least once a month. The prevalence of weekly headaches increase d in girls from 16%...

Vitamin D deficiency is often found in patients with headaches and neuralgia, which I’ve already mentioned in previous posts. Chronic pain patients with low vitamin D levels were also found to have poor exercise tolerance, making their rehabilitation...

Migraines in blind people are made worse by light, according to Dr. Burstein and his associates at Harvard. Rami Burstein is one of the leading headache researchers who often asks questions no one else thought to ask. More importantly, he often...

The fact that two out of three pregnant women stop having headaches during pregnancy is well established, however a study by Norwegian researchers published in Headache provides some additional details. Women with headaches who are pregnant for the...

Childhood abuse or neglect was reported by 58% of 1,348 migraine sufferers according to a study published in the current issue of Headache. Emotional abuse and neglect was particularly common. Patients with other chronic pain conditions also have...

Acupuncture increases connections between different areas of the brain, according to Dhond and other Korean researchers who published their findings in the journal Pain. They compared the effect of true and sham acupuncture in healthy volunteers...

I’ve written in a previous post that people exposed to pleasant music feel less pain than people listening to unpleasant music or to no music at all. Some studies have suggested that happy music (typically music with faster tempo and major mode) is...

Alcohol can trigger a headache immediately or soon after it is consumed or the next morning. Some people develop a headache only from a particular type of alcohol, such as red wine, rum, or beer, while others cannot drink any form of alcohol without...

Migralex is finally available to all headache sufferers. This is the first new brand of headache medicine in 15 years. After years of painstaking research, complicated development work, and manufacturing setup it is very gratifying to see Migralex...

Holiday headaches are quite avoidable, but to avoid them you have to have willpower. I know myself that it is hard to resist all the chocolate that surrounds you during the holidays. If you have a choice, pick milk chocolate over dark. There is no...

A blinded study comparing Botox with Topamax for the prevention of migraine headaches was conducted by Drs. Jaffri and Mathew and published in the current issue of Headache. They enrolled 60 patients and divided them into two groups – one group received...

Headache Relief is a new iPhone app which I developed to help patients better manage their headaches. The main feature of the app is a headache diary. A summary of all your diary entries can be emailed to yourself or your doctor in an Excel...

Botox appears to be effective for peripheral nerve pain according to a study by French researchers. This finding is consistent with my observation that injecting Botox into the skin of the top of the head in patients with headaches relieves...

Needle-free injection of sumatriptan (Imitrex) was tested for its ease of use and for its bioequivalence in a study led by Dr. Jan Brandes. The new device that provides needle-free subcutaneous injections was easy to use and if injected into the...

Dr. Oz : “Like Alexander Mauskop, I believe that magnesium can help—it relaxes arteries and muscles in the body, both of which can help with headaches”. This statement in the latest issue of O, The Oprah Magazine is not very surprising coming...

Botox can relieve pain of occipital neuralgia, according to a pilot study by neurologists in Ohio, published in Headache. Occipital neuralgia is a painful condition that manifests itself by pain in the back of the head, usually on one side...

Some migraine patients are more disturbed and disabled by migraine aura symptoms than by the headache itself. Some people do not even have pain but only auras. In the majority the aura is visual and consists of squiggly lines, flashing lights...

A new treatment for migraines is very effective and well tolerated, according to a paper published in Neurology. Two years ago I mentioned on this blog that this new migraine drug did well in Phase II trial and now the results of Phase III also appear...