MRI Specialist Tension Headache Treatment Centers
The study investigated 18 patients with tension headaches. All patients’ clinical features were recorded and the researchers used lasers to evaluate the tenderness of the muscles of the head face and neck.
Patients were then divided into two groups. One group was treated with anti-depressants and the other by fitting a dental mouth guard or bite plate into the mouth. This is also known as an intra-oral appliance and many studies have proven this to be effective in many patients.
The type of mouth guard that was used did not affect the teeth, or the bite and the clinicians used speech testing to adjust it. Patients that were treated with anti-depressants were given 10 mg daily of an anti-depressant medication called “amitriptyline”.
In both groups, treatment reduced the tension headaches for the patients. On comparison of the two groups, the dental mouth guard/bite plate group had better treatment results than those who received the anti-depressant “amitriptyline”.
The Laser tenderness scores for tension headache were also better in the group that was treated with the dental mouth guard/bite plate. Those treated with antidepressant medications also had improved tenderness scores, only less so.
The results of this study show that muscle tenderness in tension headache is treated more effectively with dental mouth guards/bite plates than with the anti-depressant medication “amitriptyline”.
Both treatments, however, can and do interrupt pain signals to treat tension headache symptoms.
View the original tension headache study at this link: Effects of amitriptyline and intra-oral device appliance on clinical and laser-evoked potentials features in chronic tension-type headache
