A migraine is not just a headache. For more than a billion people living with the neurological condition across the world, the throbbing pain can last for hours, even days, and can trigger nausea, vomiting, flashes of light, and blurred vision. More often than not, medicines offer little help. What if an unconventional method could ease the pain?
Suggests vibration can be a suitable therapy for migraines. Vibration therapy once every week for six weeks could reduce migraine episodes by more than three days. This could be a big relief as migraine disrupts day-to-day activities and the debilitating pain severely affects one’s mood.
This kind of vibration targets nerve cells under the nasal membrane (called sphenopalatine ganglion or SPG). SPG is linked to the hypothalamus, which gets premonitions of migraine but can’t control the pain. In fact, during this phase, hyperactivity in the hypothalamus can actually intensify the pain. Nasal vibrations stimulate SPG and by extension, the hypothalamus, to reduce the hyperactivity and bring about a fair amount of pain control.
“In India, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories h as rolled out a US FDA-approved wearable therapy device called Nerivio, which uses “Remote Electrical Neuromodulation to prevent and treat migraine.”
“The brain gets inflamed during a migraine attack, which triggers nerves to shoot off pain signals. But vibrations make the cells smaller. They take up less space and cause less pressure on the meninges, removing the pain trigger. And all this, right at home. It’s worth a try.”
