Oxygen Therapy and Headaches

Oxygen Therapy and Headaches

For cluster-type of headaches, oxygen therapy can be effective. The benefits of oxygen therapy is not known by many doctors, and the same goes for insurance companies, who are hesitant to pay for this type of treatment. (In some cases, a letter from your doctor can sometimes help to persuade them.)

Effectiveness of Oxygen Therapy

Fifty percent of cluster headache sufferers are helped by oxygen therapy. Even though this looks like a good result, the other 50% are not helped at all. If you tend to suffer from cluster headaches and you are interested to try out oxygen therapy, it is best that you request your doctor to arrange a trial run for you.

History of Oxygen Therapy

As early as 1939, oxygen has been studied as a possible treatment for headaches. Eighty percent of migraine headaches were either helped or stopped by the oxygen treatment, as discovered by Dr. Alvarez at the Mayo Clinic. To get a 100% amount of oxygen, the patients wore masks during treatment. Not only was oxygen therapy found to work on treating cluster headaches; it was also found to be effective in relieving other types of headaches. Oxygen therapy was found to be most effective when administered at the first sign of a migraine. However, it is unfortunate that the study did not provide more details as compared to recent and thoroughly conducted studies.

You can learn more by clicking here