Despite the fact that you may not know what the word “cervicogenic” means, it may be playing a major role in your daily life. The word “cervicogenic” means “originating in the neck” and is often used to describe headaches that stem from irritation to the nerves in the neck. Cervicogenic headaches are the most common type of headache and affect as many as 9 of 10 Americans, at least occasionally. If you’ve been suffering from cervicogenic headaches, you know they can greatly affect your daily routine and quality of life.
Typically, cervicogenic headaches start with tightness in the neck and slowly lead to dull pain in the head and, in some cases, nausea and sensitivity to light. However, for some people, these headaches can be more severe and may even cause the person suffering to miss work. These types of headaches are a real physical issue for a number of people. However, many doctors attempt to treat these headaches chemically, with over-the-counter painkillers or prescription pain medications. While these drugs may provide temporary pain relief, they are really only masking the symptoms and not addressing the root cause of the headaches.
Chiropractors are trained to treat cervicogenic headaches at the root cause, a physical problem. As stated, cervicogenic headaches are caused by irritation of nerves in the neck. This irritation is often caused by bones in the neck being “pulled” by a muscle in spasm. This puts pressure on the nerves. A chiropractic adjustment can relieve this pressure by “moving” the bone away from the nerve, thus reducing the pressure and eliminating the cause of the headache. As a compliment to the adjustment, chiropractors can relax the muscle that started the chain reaction by massage, muscle stimulation, or laser therapy.
Chiropractic treatment has been found to be an effective option for both acute and chronic cervicogenic headaches. In a recent study of people who had been suffering from frequent headaches, chiropractic treatment was found to crate a 50% reduction in overall headache symptoms and a 33% reduction in medication usage. With the recent opioid epidemic, it has become more and more clear that prescription pain medication needs to be avoided whenever possible and the use of chiropractic to treat recurring headaches is a great way to avoid the dangers presented by unnecessary prescriptions. If headaches have been interfering with your day-to-day life and you have been unable to find relief, give Advanced Chiropractic & Rehab a call today at (330) 726-7404 to schedule a free consultation to see how we can help. We have been servicing the Youngstown and Mahoning Valley area since 2001 with convenient locations in Boardman and Hubbard. At Advanced Chiropractic & Rehab, we are a multi-disciplinary rehabilitation group that treats work comp injuries, whiplash, sports injuries and specializes in much more than just low back pain.