If you suffer from migraine headaches, you are not alone. Migraine pain can be debilitating for many individuals. Approximately 12% of the country’s population is affected by recurring headache attacks. OPTIMAL Pain & Regenerative Medicine® offers a migraine treatment called a sphenopalatine ganglion block for patients living in the Arlington, Fort Worth and Dallas, Texas area who suffer from migraine pain.
What is a Migraine and What Causes the Pain?
Migraines are repeated attacks of moderate to severe pain, typically on one side of the head. Many individuals experience sensitivity to light and sound, nausea or vomiting during a migraine spell. Women are three times more likely than men to suffer from a migraine.
Migraine triggers include:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Lack of adequate food or sleep
- Hormonal changes
Migraine treatments are available to individuals to help relieve pain symptoms. A sphenopalatine ganglion block may be used if conventional therapies and treatments have not worked in the past.
What is a Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block?
The Sphenopalatine Ganglion (SPG) is a group of nerve cells linked to the main nerve involved in headaches, the trigeminal nerve. The SPG is located behind the nose and carries the pain sensation.
A sphenopalatine ganglion block is a minimally invasive migraine treatment used to treat headaches and facial pain by the use of an injection. This procedure has been used by pain management physicians for many years to treat migraine pain.
A sphenopalatine ganglion block can be performed in several approaches including the transnasal, transoral and lateral approach. The transnasal approach is the most common and typically takes 15-30 minutes to complete. This migraine treatment can be performed as a diagnostic block to test the pain response or as a therapeutic block to administer the injection of a local anesthetic and a neurolytic agent to alleviate the pain.
What are the Benefits and Risks of a Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block?
A sphenopalatine ganglion block is a safe and effective migraine treatment with a low risk rate. The pain relief is felt almost immediately but may take a few days to reach full benefit. The most common side effects are developing a bitter taste in the mouth or numbness in the back of the throat from the local anesthetic dripping down into the mouth and throat.
If you suffer from migraines and are looking for an effective migraine treatment, call the physicians at OPTIMAL Pain & Regenerative Medicine® to discuss a sphenopalatine ganglion block.