Tension headaches are a serious problem in our stress-filled society, especially when it comes to being able to perform common daily tasks. A population study done by Duke University showed that “regular [daily] activities were limited by 38% of tension-type headache attacks” and that “89% of tension-type headache sufferers reported that their headaches had negatively affected their relationships with friends, colleagues, and family.”1 So, chances are, if you are suffering with headaches, your quality of life is being seriously affected.
Understanding what causes these types of headaches may enable you to seek the appropriate care you need to get rid of the pain and get your life back. Tension headaches are called cervicogenic headaches in the medical community, which is just a fancy way of saying that they are caused by mechanical dysfunction in the neck. The neck is one of three sections of the spine, which is made up of a column of bones, called vertebrae. These bones form individual joints, which are made up of two bones with a shock-absorbing disc sandwiched between them. These bones allow passage of spinal nerves between them and, when healthy, protect these nerves from injury. The brain controls every function of the body and communicates with the body through the spinal cord and they are both protected by bones. The brain is protected by the skull and the spinal cord is protected by the spinal column. So, the first place there can be interference between the communication of the brain with the rest of the body is where the nerves branching from the spinal cord exit the spine.
When the joints of the spine are injured, say from a car accident (whiplash), a slip and fall, or a sports injury, they get stuck like suction cups and do not move normally, which can irritate joint surfaces and cause inflammation of the joint. This condition is commonly known as osteoarthritis. The swelling and chemical irritants of inflammation interfere with normal nerve function. And we must remember that these nerves are very delicate. Beginning in the 1970′s, Dr. Chung Ha Suh, Ph.D and his colleagues at the Biomechanics Department of the University of Colorado demonstrated that 10 mm Hg. of pressure (the weight of a dime) on a spinal nerve decreased transmission in that nerve by up to 50%. When the nerves that control the muscles of the neck get pinched, choked, or irritated, they will cause the muscles to become hypertonic or tense, resulting in a tension headache. We can conclude, therefore, that restoring normal cervical joint function will reduce inflammation and nerve irritation, which will calm tense neck muscles and relieve the tension headache.
Treatment options for tension headache sufferers are many and varied. We will review two popular approaches for safety and effectiveness: cervical manipulation and medication. In two controlled trials that Duke University reviewed, they found that cervical spinal manipulation, or what chiropractors call “adjustments”, resulted in “immediate improvement in headache severity…and [that] a course of manipulation treatments resulted in sustained improvement in headache frequency and severity.”2 In other words, consistent, repeated adjustments over a 6 week period resulted in fast-acting and lasting relief.
Duke University reviewed another trial in which the effects and safety of amitriptyline, a headache drug, was compared with the effects and safety of cervical adjustments for the treatment of tension headache. They concluded that amitriptyline had a greater effect on the reduction of headaches than adjustments during the 6 week trial period, but that adverse effects were much more common with the group taking the drug than those receiving only adjustments. 82% of the drug patients experienced adverse effects versus only a 4% incidence of adverse effects experienced in the cervical manipulation group.3 Even more interesting is the fact that after both treatments were stopped, the group taking the drug returned to the same headache frequency and level that they experienced before the trial, while the group that received adjustments sustained the improvements that they had made after the trial.4 It just makes sense to treat the cause versus treating just the symptoms.
In addition to the treatments discussed previously, the following video, [youtube:BrAcaCylVkI?version=3;How to [link:Relieve a Headache in 2 Minutes];http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrAcaCylVkI?version=3&feature=related] will demonstrate a simple, self-help method for temporarily relieving your headache until you can receive professional care. Remember, there is no such thing as a “normal” headache. Headaches are “common”, never normal, which is why you should seek professional help to determine the cause of your headaches and have them treated appropriately.
1,2,3,4 Duke University Evidence-based Practice Center/Center for Clinical Health Policy Research
Dr. Dana Williamson is an expert in the natural treatment of tension headaches at his Chiropractic offices in Richmond and Mechanicsville VA since 2002. He is a member in good standing of the Virginia Chiropractic Association.