If you have a migraine attack, should you visit a pain management center? Pain management clinics provide migraine treatment, however, treatment options can vary, depending on the severity of the symptoms. Learn when you should consider a Pain Management Clinic for migraine treatment in this article. Visit the best Pain Management Clinic in Brooklyn at Doral Health & Wellness or log on to www.doralhw.org.
When to go to the doctor for a migraine
You should go to the doctor for a migraine if you or a loved one have a new or severe headache along with any of the following symptoms:
- High fever, stiff neck, numbness, muscle weakness, confusion, double vision, or vision loss.
- Difficulty walking or speaking clearly.
- Loss of consciousness.
- Uncontrolled nausea, or vomiting.
- Highly sensitive to light and a sudden rash.
- The head pain follows an injury or fall.
- It gets worse if you cough or make a sudden movement.
- You’re 50 or older.
- You can’t stand even with the help of a railing or the support of a chair.
- Your pupils have two different sizes.
- One of your eyelids droops.
If you lose the ability to talk during migraine attacks, get a medical ID bracelet or carry a card at all times to tell the doctors and nurses about your condition. If your loved one experiences this type of migraine, go with them to the hospital or explain it to the EMTs.
Treatment for migraine
Migraine treatment focuses on stopping symptoms and preventing future attacks. Your treatment depends on the frequency and severity of your migraine, whether you have nausea and vomiting with your headaches, how disabling your headaches are, and other medical conditions you have. Usually, many medications are designed to treat migraines which fall into two categories:
- Pain-relieving medications: These medications also known as acute or abortive medications, are taken at the time of migraine attacks and designed to stop the symptoms.
- Preventive medications: These types of drugs are taken regularly to lower the severity or frequency of migraines.
Medications
These medications can relieve migraine symptoms. It works best when you take them at the first sign of an oncoming migraine attack. Here are the most common medications that are used to relieve migraine symptoms:
- Pain relievers:
These medicines are over-the-counter or prescription pain relievers including aspirin or ibuprofen. This works well for short-term use for mild migraine pain. Using it for too long, may lead to medication-overuse headaches, and possibly ulcers and bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract.
- Triptans:
This medicine is given on a prescription to treat migraine. It blocks pain signals in the brain. It also relieves many symptoms of migraine. However, it is not safe for people who are at risk of stroke or heart attack.
- Dihydroergotamine:
This medicine is available as a nasal spray or injection, it is effective if taken shortly after the onset of migraine symptoms that last longer than 24 hours. However, it has side effects like worsening migraine-related vomiting and nausea. It is not recommended for people with health conditions such as coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, or kidney or liver disease.
- Lasmiditan:
This newer oral tablet is approved to treat migraine with or without aura. In drug trials, it significantly improved headache pain. However, it can produce a sedative effect and cause dizziness, so people who take it should avoid driving or operating machinery for at least 8 hours.
- Oral calcitonin gene-related peptide antagonists known as gepants:
Medications like ubrogepant and rimegepant are oral gepants that are approved for treating migraine in adults. In drug trials, medicines from this class were more effective than placebo in relieving pain 2 hours after taking them. It is also effective in treating migraine symptoms such as nausea and sensitivity to light and sound. However, it has side effects such as dry mouth, nausea, and sleepiness. These medications are not prescribed if you are taking strong CYP3A4 inhibitor medicines that are used to treat cancer.
- Intranasal zavegepant:
This medication is approved by the FDA as a nasal spray to treat migraines. Zavegepant is a gepant and only migraine medicine comes in a nasal spray which provides pain relief within 15 minutes to 2 hours after taking a single dose. Its effects last up to 48 hours and can improve other symptoms of migraine like nausea and sensitivity to light and sound. Like other migraine medications, it also has side effects like taste changes, nasal discomfort, and throat irritation.
- Opioid medications:
For people who can’t take other migraine medications, narcotic opioid medications are prescribed. However, it is only used for short-term, because they are highly addictive and only used if other treatments are not effective.
- Anti-nausea drugs:
These medications help if your migraine is accompanied by aura, and causes nausea and vomiting symptoms. It includes chlorpromazine, metoclopramide, or prochlorperazine. It is often prescribed with pain medications.
Keep in mind that some of these medications are not safe to take during pregnancy. If you’re pregnant or trying to get pregnant, don’t use any of these medications without consulting with your healthcare provider.
Preventive medications
These medications are prescribed to manage migraines that are frequent, long-lasting, or cause severe headaches that don’t respond well to other treatments. These medicines reduce how often you get a migraine, how severe the attacks are, and how long they last, and include:
- Blood pressure-lowering medications:
These medications help to manage your blood pressure that can trigger migraine, usually with aura. It includes beta-blockers like propranolol and metoprolol, and calcium channel blockers like verapamil.
- Antidepressants:
A tricyclic antidepressant, amitriptyline, can also help to prevent migraines. However, amitriptyline can cause side effects like sleepiness, so other antidepressants might be prescribed instead.
- Anti-seizure drugs:
These drugs can reduce less frequent migraines, however, they cause side effects like dizziness, weight changes, nausea, and more. Pregnant women or women who are trying to get pregnant can’t take these medications.
- Botox injections:
These injections are given every 12 weeks to prevent migraines in some adults.
- Calcitonin gene-related peptides (CGRP) monoclonal antibodies:
These are newer medicines that are approved by the FDA to treat migraines. It is given monthly or quarterly by injection and the only side effect is causing a reaction at the injection site.
- Atogepant:
This medicine is a gepant that prevents migraines. It’s a common tablet form to be taken daily. It may cause side effects of nausea, constipation, and fatigue.
- Rimegepant:
This medicine is unique because it’s a gepant that prevents migraines along with treating migraines when needed.
Your healthcare provider gives you the right combination of medications you need to manage your migraine. Some of these medications are not safe during pregnancy. So, if you’re pregnant or trying to get pregnant, don’t take any of these medicines without talking to your doctor first.
How do Pain Management Clinics handle migraines?
When you go to a Pain Management Clinic for migraine, they diagnose problems associated with headaches and perform the following tests:
- Physical exam including vital signs.
- Neurologic exam.
- Testing strength, gait, and reflexes.
- Testing sensory functions like vision and hearing.
- Assessing meningitis or other infections.
The doctors will give medications, including a migraine cocktail, which is a combination of shots to treat migraine pain. It can vary between a high-dose non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and an anti-nausea medication. Both virtual and in-person urgent care providers may also prescribe medications, especially when you’re already diagnosed with chronic headaches or need to control pain.
Pain management centers are a good option for getting migraine relief treatments. They can offer both in-person and virtual services that help the patient get the right medications to relieve migraine symptoms. In case you have severe migraine symptoms, then you should visit the ER to get immediate treatment to prevent complications.
If you need help with migraine, visit our clinic to get professional medical help. Call us to get an appointment now!!!! Visit Doral Health & Wellness Pain Relief Department in Brooklyn, to get professional help and guidance on how to manage your problem. Call us on + 1-718-367-2555 to get a consultation. If you need help learning coping methods, register your information and make direct contact with our doctors at https://yuz88hfiyh7.typeform.com/Doralintake. Log on to www.doralhw.org. Or visit us at 1797 Pitkin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11212.
