Tag Archives: Headaches

Needles and Their Effects on Headaches

Posted on 30. May, 2009 by wisdom.

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Two separate systematic reviews by Cochrane Researchers show  acupuncture is  for prevention of headaches and migraines. However the reviews show  faked procedures, where needles are incorrectly inserted, may be as effective.

“Much of the clinical benefit of acupuncture might be due to non-specific needling effects and powerful placebo effects, meaning selection of specific needle points may be less important than many practitioners have traditionally argued,” says lead researcher of both studies, Klaus Linde.

Two seperate studies were done one with migraine and the other with tension type headaches. Patients treated with acupuncture over an 8 week time course, suffered fewer headaches compared to those who were given only pain killers. In the migraine study, acupuncture was superior to proven prophylactic drug treatments, but faked treatments were no less effective. In the tension headache study, true acupuncture was actually slightly more effective than faked treatments.

The results indicate that acupuncture could be used as an alternative for those patients who prefer not to use drug treatments, and additionally may result in fewer side effects. Even so some people will have mixed results and may or may not see an improvement. For me personally, I noticed worsening with acupuncture treatment due to the needles.

This article is adapated from ScienceDaily.

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Headache After Brain Injury

Posted on 20. May, 2009 by wisdom.

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U.S. soldiers who have been in Iraq are returning to the United States with headaches. This is the result of a mild trauma or exposure to a blast. This information was presented at American Academy of Neurology’s 61st Annual Meeting in Seattle.

The study involved nearly 1,000 U.S. Army soldiers returning from Iraq or Afghanistan last year in 2008. All had experienced a concussion, head injury or blast exposure while deployed.

Nearly 98 percent of the soldiers reported having headaches during the last three months of their deployment. The headaches started within one week of the traumatic brain injury for 37 percent of the soldiers, and within one to four weeks for 20 percent. Among the soldiers whose headaches started within a week of the injury, 60 percent had migraine-like headaches and 40 percent had headaches that interfered with their ability to do their daily activities. Thirty percent had headaches for 15 or more days each month.

“Mild traumatic brain injury is occurring in 15 to 25 percent of soldiers deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan…The associated headaches can be a source of impaired occupational functioning. These findings should alert health care providers….”

Adapted from materials provided by American Academy of Neurology.

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