Migraines & Back Pain: What You Need to Know

If you have been suffering from continuous migraines that interrupt your daily routine and have lacked answers from your primary care provider, upper or lower back pain might be the cause. Headaches and migraines are conditions characterized by persistent pain in the head or neck, and they can frequently become chronic for some individuals. NJ Pain & Spine is a fully credentialed office-based pain management center staffed by pain management specialists who work with you to help reduce your pain. Dr. Ednan Sheikh is the NJ Pain & Spine pain management specialist who offers care from diagnostic treatment to medication management. The severity of migraines varies among individuals, but they consistently pose a significant burden and are a source of considerable discomfort. Effective neck and back treatments can provide substantial relief for those suffering from migraines and headaches. 

The causes of headaches can be vascular, muscular, inflammatory, or pressure-related. A migraine is a severe, painful headache that is often preceded or accompanied by sensory warning signs such as flashes of light, blind spots, tingling in the arms and legs, nausea, vomiting, and increased sensitivity to light and sound. The excruciating pain that migraines cause can last for hours or even days. 

The American Migraine Foundation researched the correlation between chronic migraines and neck/back pain. Between people with episodic migraine (0 to 14 headache days per month), chronic migraine (15 or more headache days per month), people with no migraine at all, and people who have only neck pain, they found that about 89% of people who have migraine have neck pain. Their research found that using preventative treatments in the neck/back areas, such as the ones at NJ Pain & Spine, has been proven to decrease symptoms of migraines in these patients. 

Not everyone is comfortable with highly invasive surgery, which is why pain management specialists offer a variety of methods to treat Chronic pain. Pain Management Specialists can treat this with injections, physical therapy, lifestyle changes, exercise, and psychological treatments. Patients take an active role in their treatment.

NJ Pain & Spine has a variety of treatments for the different parts of the body; some of the Cervical Neck Treatments offered are listed below:

• Cervical Epidural Spine Injection

This injection relieves neck, shoulder, and arm pain caused by a pinched nerve (or nerves) in the cervical spine. Conditions such as herniated discs and spinal stenosis can compress nerves, causing inflammation and pain. The medication injected helps decrease the swelling of nerves.

•  Facet Blocks

This is an injection of numbing medicine. It bathes the medial branch nerves, which attach to the facet joints of your spine. These nerves hurt when facet joints are injured or diseased. The injection helps find the source of your pain. And it may relieve your pain for a brief time.

• Radiofrequency Neurotomy of the Cervical Facets

During this minimally invasive procedure, the physician uses heat from radio waves to treat painful facet joints in your neck. This procedure, also called radiofrequency rhizotomy, can treat pain that doesn’t respond to medications or physical therapy.

• Posterior Occipital Nerve Block

An occipital nerve block is an injection of a steroid or other medication around the greater and lesser occipital nerves on the back of the head just above the neck area.

• Stellate Ganglion Block

This injection can both diagnose and treat pain coming from the sympathetic nerves. It is a standard treatment for shingles and complex regional pain syndromes affecting the head, face, neck, or arms. Usually, a series of these injections is needed to treat the problem.

Incorporating effective neck and back treatments can significantly alleviate the pain and discomfort associated with migraines and headaches. Visit NJ Pain & Spine to help relieve your neck and back pain issues. With many North and Central Jersey locations, NJ Pain & Spine is here to help you!