What is Surgical Migraine Treatment?
Surgical migraine treatment has become a recognized and effective treatment option for individuals who suffer from severe, chronic headaches but do not respond to other forms of treatment. The procedure was initially developed by plastic surgeons who found that patients who suffered from migraines experienced far fewer headaches after a cosmetic forehead-lift.
Surgical migraine treatment works by relieving the pressure on various branches of the trigeminal nerve. It is believed to be the interaction between the trigeminal nerve and the corrugator muscle that’s responsible for chronic headaches in many migraine sufferers. The corrugator muscle is found just above the eyebrows and is part of the muscle group responsible for forming frown lines. It is the interaction between the trigeminal nerve and this muscle that can initiate migraine attacks.
To prevent this interaction, our experienced plastic surgeons, Dr Danielle Andry and Dr Nandi Wijay, make a small incision which allows them to remove the pain triggering muscle without damaging the trigeminal nerve. Once the muscle is removed, the nerve cannot be triggered. That reduces the symptoms of migraines and can even eliminate them entirely. As an additional benefit of the treatment, the patient will notice that the frown lines between the eyebrows soften, and in some cases, completely disappear.
