Posted 7/24/2013 4:44 AM (GMT 0)
I had my 2nd migraine surgery June 27, 2013 where they removed the R temporal artery & tied it off @ the forehead, they also cut out a window in the temporalis muscle bilaterally so the muscle doesn't squeeze on any nerves or blood vessels. It improved my headaches by 75 to 80%. My pain was in the bil. temporal area & u could always feel the artery being very painful, tight, distended, & throbbing. Last yr. they removed the zygomaticotemporalis nerve bilaterally which was a total failure. Out of 50 migraine surgery patients I was his only failure. He did nerve blocks for 2 mos. afterwards to pin down the trigger sites, the circular ridge around the temples. On my pre-surgery consult he noticed the bulging temporal artery & felt it throbbing. It's not suppose to throb much if @ all, but some people have throbbing, but only a few have pain w/the throbbing per the doctor. He felt it had much to do w/my daily, 37 yr. migraines, which by the way destroyed my life & nursing career. I took early retirement as a result. I have some smaller throbbing in many of the other blood vessels, but I can lay down for a while & it lets up w/o drugs now. I think in chronic daily headaches the arteries are responsible for much of migraine pain & has been a big mystery. It's very much underestimated & triggers the trigeminal nerve which sends you into hell as it produces lots of prostaglandin (Pain chemical, decreases the endorphines, decreases seratonin causing depression, & decreases trytophan (sleep inducer). Then follows nausea, etc. Dr. Barry Eppley, plastic surgeon in Avon, IN is the awesome surgeon who did my surgery. Ph. no. 317-217-2200. Google Migraine Surgery, not migraine headaches & the migraine surgeons pop up. There you will see the research & real truth & info. Forget Diamond Headache Clinic (they've never even heard of migraine surgery), forget neurologists (I despise them-they know little & their "oh, you're having rebound headaches from too much migraine meds" BS is exactly that "BS". Only under "Migraine Surgery" will you find your knowledge & real help. I had to pay for it as insurance & medicare won't cover it. Medicaid now pays for the excision of the zygomaticaltemporalis nerve as of Jan. 2, 2013. There are 4 cerebral zones in the head, & the temporal area is the most common area but it has many trigger sites, so you can't give up. Study the research so see where your wife falls in at. I am a RN/BSN & now do paramedical exams part-time. Good luck.