By Neurostimulation Device may prevent the frequent migraine headaches. If you are someone who suffers from migraine headaches, you are not alone. In fact, the National Institutes of Health reports that around 12 percent of the U.S. population gets them (1). Migraine headaches are recurring attacks of pain that people have that may be moderate to severe, and the pain throbs or pulses. There are many things that trigger migraine headaches, including anxiety, stress, exposure to light. Also, even a lack of sleep or food.
Now, there’s a new Neurostimulation Device, a non-invasive device that may help people prevent them by using it just 20 minutes per day.
In the May 2017 issue of the journal Neurological Sciences, researchers shared information about a preliminary trial on a new neurostimulation device. It has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (2). The device, called the Cefaly, is small yet promises to deliver big results. Using adhesive, the device is placed on the person’s forehead for 20 minutes per day. Being a neurostimulation device, it delivers external stimulation to the trigeminal nerve in the head.
By delivering the stimulation to the trigeminal nerve, the device helps to prevent migraines. In fact, in the preliminary study, researchers recruited 23 headache center patients having chronic migraine. They use the device for 20 minutes per day, for a four-month period. The results it showed that by using the device, hence, the patients had a 50% reduction in monthly migraine days. As well as, a 50% reduction in the monthly medication use over the four-month period.
This device offers those with migraines, a tool that offers the benefits of preventing the pain.
But, it is also non-invasive and doesn’t use drug therapy. The Cefaly device is also safe, offering the best safety efficacy ratio compared to anti-migraine oral medication (3). By delivering precise micro-pulses to the trigeminal nerve, then, it is able to reduce migraines. This form of treatment has been used in numerous clinical studies since 2008, showing that it’s safe and effective.
The device used successfully for those with an episodic migraine, but there is no data as of yet for those with a chronic migraine. An episodic migraine is experienced less than 14 days per month, while a chronic migraine characterized as 15 days more per month, for more than a three-month period.
This is great news for those who have experience migraines and would like to avoid medications. The device is small, easy to use, and preliminary studies show promising results.
Sources:
- National Institutes of Health. Migraine. https://medlineplus.gov/migraine.html
- Neurological Sciences. Transcutaneous supraorbital neurostimulation for the prevention of a chronic migraine: a prospective, open-label preliminary trial. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10072-017-2916-7
- Cefaly. Information about the product. http://www.cefaly.us/en
