Botox® is the No. 1 selling treatment to ease wrinkles on the forehead and around the eyes, but the injectable has useful medical applications, too. For example, Botox effectively helps with hyperhidrosis, or abnormal sweating, and overactive bladder.
This famous aesthetic treatment is also useful in preventing chronic migraines. At Interventional Spine & Pain Institute in Vero Beach, Florida, experienced pain management physician Dr. Michael Esposito may recommend Botox injections for patients with chronic migraines. Here’s how it works and when to seek treatment.
A migraine is a neurological episode, usually characterized by an intense headache on one side of the head. Nausea, auras, and sensitivity to light and sound accompany migraine attacks.
Botox can prevent migraines by interrupting the pathway of pain transmission between the brain and the spinal cord. Dr. Esposito injects Botox into strategic nerves to block the release of neurotransmitters and molecules associated with headache pain. The drug blocks the nerve synapses, and pain stops.
If you experience migraines, you should seek medical help rather than suffer in silence. Keep track of your attacks, the symptoms, and how you treated them. Then make an appointment at Interventional Spine & Pain Institute to discuss your treatment options.
Botox can prevent or reduce migraines in people with chronic episodes. Experiencing more than 15 migraines a month makes you a chronic migraine sufferer. If you experience fewer than 15 migraines per month, Botox usually isn’t recommended.
Botox is part of a comprehensive headache treatment plan. Dr. Esposito may recommend other medications, dietary changes, trigger identification and avoidance, and other lifestyle changes to help you find relief from migraines.
Dr. Esposito uses a tiny needle to inject Botox into small muscles just under your skin. Treatment concentrates on the area around your face, head, and neck, including your forehead and temples. Your treatment plan is customized to you, but you can expect about 30 injections.
The entire appointment takes about 20 minutes. You feel the pricks and pinch of the needle, but the pain is quite tolerable. You may have a sore neck after your appointment, but an ice pack relieves the discomfort.
You might not notice a change in the frequency of your migraines for several weeks. For some people, it takes about six months to get a notable benefit from Botox. During this time, you can continue to take any other medications without a risk of negative drug interactions.
You may need several treatments, too. Because everyone responds to Botox differently, it’s difficult to know how your treatment will progress. You may find that just one or two treatments is enough to halt frequent migraines, or you may need regular treatments to manage headaches.
If you want to try Botox for migraine headache pain, contact Interventional Spine & Pain Institute today. Call the office or use this website to set up an appointment.
