Botox for Migraines

A Recent study, the largest to date, Suggests that Botox for migraines is a credible approach alleviation and prevention of the syndrome.

This is according to the largest study performed to date, presented at the 45th Annual Meeting of the American Headache Society.

Eighty percent of patients in the study said that after the migraine Botox appraoch, their head pain was less frequent, less intense, or both.

The study focused on 271 patients who suffer from Migraines and other head pain, three-quarters of whom had tried many other therapies, without success. Half had been over-using medications in an effort to relieve pain.

How Safe is Botox for Headache Relief?

"Many of these patients otherwise would be left with narcotics as their best option," said Andrew M. Blumenfeld, M.D., principal investigator of the study and chief of neurology at Kaiser Permanente in San Diego. "Our study also shows Botox for migraines cause fewer side effects than many of the standard medications."

In the study, patients were treated every three months, with a minimum of 2 treatments and a maximum of 5 treatments.

Compared to standard medications, which can cause a number of side effects, such as upset stomach, drowsiness and weight gain, migraine Botox treatment side effects are relatively rare, so far. But, Botox is a toxin, in fact, it is one of the most toxic substances on the planet.

However, most in his study reported no side effects, said Dr. Blumenfeld. Among the side effects people did experience were :

• eyelid drooping (1%)
• eyebrow drooping (1%)
• neck muscle weakness (1%)
• other effects such as flu-like symptoms or head pain(2%)

Botox is given in the form of a liquid injected under the skin, usually but not always, into muscles. Dr. Blumenfeld uses about 30 injections per treatment, and generally favors a moderately low dose of Botox.

Researchers are unsure why Botox relieves head pain. For Migraines, there is no muscle component. Scientists believe Botox works by blocking the protein that carries the message of pain to the brain.

Meanwhile in Washington State, Regence BlueShield will discontinue coverage for Botox treatments for migraine attacks. The insurer says emerging scientific evidence shows that the wrinkle-relaxing toxins work not much better than placebo injections.

An article from the Seattle Times in 2008 stated that:

The treatment is expensive, about $650 every three months or so for the drug alone."There is no definitive information in the research literature that suggests [Botox] unequivocally mitigates severity of headaches,"

Spokesman Pakalnis said a few patients might benefit from Botox for migraines, but there is no way to identify them before treatment. Apparently that individual does not suffer from migraine.

While the Beyond Headaches Lifestyle supports non toxic approaches first, we also concur that no stone should be left unturned.

Read more about the best Migraine Relief Alternative here

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