All About Infusion Therapy for Migraine

Headaches are something everyone has to cope with at some point, but chronic issues like migraine are a source of pain and frustration for over a billion people globally, and 37 million people in America. It’s one of the most debilitating conditions we have, as over 90% of those coping with it find their work, social and personal lives directly affected by its symptoms.

There are several ways to approach managing migraine attacks, such as injections and oral medication, but infusion therapy is an option that may help people that deal with problems the other methods don’t resolve. Let’s look at the possible benefits of this method by examining some basics about migraine headaches, the common causes, and how infusion therapy offers relief.

Residents of the Norwood, Anderson and Westside, Ohio or Crestview Hills, Kentucky area looking for migraine headache relief can find help with the medical team at Riverhills Neuroscience.

Migraine basics

Headaches can be broken down to either primary or secondary types, the former indicating the headache as a primary cause, and the latter having another condition causing headaches as a symptom. Migraine is a primary neurological condition where headaches are just one of four phases. These phases are: prodrome, a pre pain phase that starts the day before an attack, the aura phase where you deal with sensory problems, the headache phase where the pain sets in, and postdrome, which is often compared to dealing with a hangover.

Not everyone deals with all four phases, and the pulsing, pounding, throbbing or dull headache phase can also come with nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sound. The number of migraines you deal with can vary wildly from person to person, ranging from several in a week to once a year.

Migraine causes 

The overall cause of migraine attacks are not well understood, but research indicates unusual activity in the brain that leads to changes in nerve signals, blood vessels and chemicals there that can be triggered by a range of different stimuli. These include weather extremes, bright lights, barometric pressure changes, hormone changes, loud noises, dehydration, sleep pattern changes, smoking, alcohol use, stress, and even some foods.

To track down triggers, a headache journal can help to document when attacks happen, what activities you did, and what meals you ate to further isolate ways to avoid future problems.

Our infusion therapy treatment

Intravenous (IV) infusions have the advantage of delivering medication directly into the bloodstream where it can go where it’s needed swiftly and allow us to control the amount of medication you receive. We use Vyepti (eptinezumab) to help, which is a type of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP, a chemical present in the body involved in neurological processing) medication to help prevent or reduce the intensity of migraine attacks.

The amount of time for each session and the number of sessions will be catered to your needs, so if you’re struggling with migraine attacks and need help, make an appointment with the team at Riverhills Neuroscience today to get relief.