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Botox As A Migraine Treatment

By Cali Marinaw


There has been many new uses for botulinum toxin injections in recent years in the cosmetic medicine industry. 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. Migraines are one of the newer conditions that botox has been used to treat.

In this article we shall take a brief look at this new application of botox injections.

Background behind this idea

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. Clostridium botulinum is a bacterium contained in these injections, and that is the cause of the effect. 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.

Migraines and botox

The release of the neuro-chemical serotonin is the main way for migraines to be mediated. Treatments of botox do not affect that, but there is evidence that shows patients who find relief from migraine pain from the treatments.

People are looking forward to the new research that is being done that seems to show that migraines can be reduced using these treatments. The recommendations from the studies is to inject the botox into the scalp at around 31 -39 different points in patients. There are a number of theories that have been postulated:

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

Next, that it relaxes the scalp muscles and may help reduce blood pressure within the brain

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.

If they treatments make it so that less than 15 days a month are headache free, or if they have at least 2 cycles of botox without seeing any relief, then this may not be the right treatment for that particular patient.

Are risks a factor?

There have been rare reports of allergic reactions or neck pain from botox scalp injections.

Summary

Migraines are now being treated by injections of botox, but it's still a new application for this condition. Research is still being conducted and the results so far have been promising, making it a treatment that is currently approved in managing chronic migraine.




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