Diagnostics & Testing

The Link Between Septoplasty and Migraine Headaches

Migraines represent a special breed of headache which rightfully own a place in the canon of terrible maladies. Distinguished by their unbearable pain, frequent nausea, and sensitivities to light and sound, migraines pretty well knock out the patients they strike.

As a sinus surgeon in Los Angeles, I work a lot with patients whose migranes may be linked to other issues of respiratory distress or sinus infection. I have seen some reason to believe anecdotal evidence suggesting that pain in the face can trigger broader pain elsewhere:

[B]ut pressure from the deviation can set up a pain chain reaction that mimics the pain levels of migraine caused by pressure elsewhere. . . .Some ear, nose and throat specialists claim impressive success rates among migraine patients who undergo surgery to correct their deviated septum.

To be clear: septoplasty is hardly a cure for migraine, and I wouldn’t recommend it unless we had strong evidence to believe the two were causally related. Still, some patients report diminished headaches as a side effect of septoplasty, an effect which shouldn’t be ignored.

If you have a deviated septum and want to learn more about how septoplasty may improve your breathing and your life, contact the Los Angeles septoplasty doctors here today.

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