Headache Treatment Program

Overview

Holy Name Medical Center's Headache Treatment Program specializes in caring for adults, adolescents and children who suffer from intractable migraine headaches, especially for those whom conventional methods of therapy have failed. Often, successful treatment for these unrelenting migraines involves infusion therapy or a nerve block. Holy Name is one of the few facilities in New Jersey offering these types of treatment to headache patients of all ages.

Infusion Therapy

Under the direction of staff neurologists, outpatient intravenous protocols are administered by nursing staff specially trained in the field of headache medicine, ensuring maximum safety and effectiveness. About 90 percent of patients experience a significant improvement, if not a complete eradication, of symptoms.

Children and teens are treated in the pediatric and young adult center while adults are treated in a separate adult infusion area. Most patients require one visit; others may need repetitive, daily treatment for up to three days.

Infusion therapy is highly effective for patients with:

• chronic migraines that have failed to respond to multiple treatments and for those who are disabled by their headaches but do not require or desire inpatient treatment;
• status migrainosis, migraine headaches lasting longer than 72 hours and don't respond to conventional medications;
• acute migraine attacks that last fewer than 72 hours but are debilitating and not responsive to self-administered medications;
• prolonged aura;
• cluster headache exacerbation; and/or
• new daily persistent headache.

Nerve Block (SPG Block)

Anesthetizing the bundle of nerves that is often involved in headaches and facial pain, known as the sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG), is frequently a successful, non-invasive method of treating all types of chronic headaches, including migraines and trigeminal neuralgia.

Physicians perform the outpatient procedure in the office, using a small catheter through the nose to numb the SPG. Patients experience little to no discomfort and are able to resume their normal activities after the procedure.