While we wish it never happened, an infrequent occurrence following migraine surgery is the return of headache pain. Just like any surgical procedure, migraine operations do have their rare failures, and in the case of migraine surgery, the failure rate is, fortunately, less than 10%. If you have a presence on social media, you may…
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Today on Facebook I got a great question that I think is important…. “Are ON flares also called migraines?” In fact the word “migraine” has a broad meaning, including many different kinds of severe headaches with different causes. Some migraines are caused by issues in or near the brain, such as dilated blood vessels or…
Read Full ArticleAs you might expect, one of the most common questions that we get at Migraine Surgery Specialty Center is regarding the issues surrounding health insurance and costs for the procedure. On social media, this is also one of the most questioned aspects of our care, and it is not unusual to get a comment such…
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I spoke with another migraine patient today who told me that despite (and likely resulting from) weekly visits to the emergency room because of severe migraine pain, the doctors there have labeled her as drug seeking and refuse to give her pain medication. This is a very, very unfortunate but very very common report from…
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It seems there is often much misunderstanding surrounding the terminology pertaining to headaches. While “migraine headache” is indeed a specific diagnosis, there are many subtypes of migraines with terminology that can get confusing. Additionally, many headache sufferers have not yet seen a neurologist to get a migraine diagnosis, and others have diagnoses such as “chronic…
Read Full ArticleMillions of Americans experience frequent headaches. Migraines, and sometimes cluster headaches, may occur with such intensity that one must retreat from their daily activities for a time. The migraines that occur are as unique as each individual who experiences them. They can have multiple triggers and may respond differently to management strategies at different times.…
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Dr. Lowenstein: Hi, and welcome to the Headache 360 podcast. I’m your host, Dr. Adam Lowenstein. As we’ve discussed many times before on this podcast, my goal here is to try and get some expertise from specialists who patients with chronic headaches and migraines will often see during a course of their care. Today, we…
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The term “migraine surgery” was coined as a simplified way for the public to understand that there is a surgical procedure to improve migraine headache symptoms. In fact, the more appropriate name for this procedure is “nerve decompression surgery for the relief of headache and migraine symptoms.” That’s a bit too wordy, but unfortunately, the…
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There are going to be a lot of folks who respond to this without reading further, who will insist that there is no cure for migraine headaches, and who don’t want to consider things outside of their personal experience. The following discussion is for everyone else…. Google the word “cure” and you will find the…
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Dr. Lowenstein: Hi and welcome to the Headache 360 Podcast. I’m your host, Dr. Adam Lowenstein. I have a really interesting guest today and a very unique one. Jamie Sanders is a blogger and I guess I personally think even more importantly, a patient and migraine advocate, an advocate for patients with migraine. She has…
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Weather can be a trigger for migraines as well as several other headache syndromes. I’m finding that this time of year in Southern California, and even in Colorado where my Denver office is located, can be the worst time of year for those yearning for headache relief. Los Angeles recorded record-breaking temperatures of 121 degrees…
Read Full ArticleI recently saw a post on our FaceBook page that disparaged migraine surgery because all migraines could be cured by a diet with some catchy name. While it never feels great to have my hard work attacked by someone who doesn’t have an in-depth knowledge of what I do, I decided not to hide the…
Read Full ArticleMigraine pain can interfere with your ability to engage in life the way you’d like. It doesn’t take much effort to find a variety of remedies and treatments aimed at reducing the frequency and severity of migraine headaches. What may take a little more effort than expected is finding a solution that works. Here, we…
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A frequent question I get asked involves nerve injections that make things worse rather than better. Many times nerves blocks work just as they are supposed to but when they don’t, patients are often left trying to figure out why??? So what happens when nerve blocks make the pain worse? Remember that nerve blocks…
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