Headaches

Visit the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh if your headaches are:

• Severe
• Happen suddenly
• Disrupt your daily life
• Happen with dizziness, confusion, vision changes, stiff neck, or other new symptoms
• Require pain relievers at least three days per week
• Don’t improve with over-the-counter pain relievers

Also, if you’ve had headaches for quite a while but the characteristics of the headaches suddenly change, it’s important to schedule an evaluation to find out what’s causing this change. 

There are more than 150 types of headaches, so the diagnostic process can be complicated. At the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh, the team does a medical history review and detailed symptom assessment. 

The team may ask you to keep a symptom diary that tracks your headache days, times, intensity level, and the circumstances surrounding the headaches. 

You may need lab tests to check for underlying conditions like diabetes and imaging tests like MRI, CT scan, or X-rays to look for brain or spine abnormalities. In some cases, you may need digital subtraction angiography or venogram, a minimally invasive procedure, for blood vessel imaging during your CT or MRI scan. 

After diagnosing the specific kind of headache and the root causes, the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh team can create a pain management plan for you.

The Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh offers many options for chronic headaches, including:

Medication

Medication can include as-needed pain drugs, preventive drugs you take every day, inhaled selective serotonin receptor agonist (SSRI) nasal sprays, antidepressants, and other options.

Botox® 

Botox injections can prevent pain networks from activating in your brain. They may reduce migraine headaches by about half after two treatment sessions.

Injections

Several types of interventional injections can curb headaches for as long as several months, including nerve blocks, trigger point injections, and cervical epidural injections. 

Interventional procedures 

If your headache pain persists and disrupts your life, you may need an interventional procedure like radiofrequency nerve ablation, which deactivates the nerve signals causing your headaches. Another option, cervical spinal cord stimulation, can block or conceal nerve signals.

Medication and procedures are only one part of a headache management plan. The Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh team can help you manage headache triggers, and they usually also recommend conservative options like physical therapy, osteopathic manipulation, and massage therapy.

Depending on the type and cause of your headaches, you may qualify for other treatment options such as medical marijuana.  

To find out about how you can control your headache pain, call the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh or click the booking tool now.