Painful occipital-neuralgia is sometimes mistaken for migraines. However, occipital neuralgia has very different origins and therapies.
What is neuralgia occipital?
A uncommon yet excruciating illness called neuralgia produces excruciating, penetrating headaches. The upper neck, the back of the head, or behind the ears are where the discomfort is felt.
Even the simple act of combing their hair or resting on a pillow can be quite painful for certain people. Others have numbness as a result of occipital-neuralgia.
The greater, lesser, and third occipital nerves are the three occipital nerves that pass through each side of your scalp and carry sensation signals to your brain. The signs of occipital-neuralgia may arise from irritation of any of these nerves.
Occipital neuralgia causes
A pinched nerve in your neck, a fracture to your skull or scalp, or tense muscles pressing on nerves can all result in neuralgia.
Infections, inflammation, degeneration of the spine, gout, diabetes, arthritis, and other medical disorders can also result in occipital-neuralgia.
The number of individuals affected by neuralgia is not well known. On the other hand, a 2021 study including 800 patients in a headache clinic located in a hospital discovered that almost 25% of the patients had neuralgia.
Symptoms of occipital neuralgia
Occipital-neuralgia symptoms might appear quickly and without notice. A shooting, throbbing, burning, or aching pain that lasts for a few seconds to several minutes is one of the symptoms.
Usually, one or both sides of the head are affected first, then the back of the skull. Your scalp, upper neck, and the area behind your eyes and ears can all feel it. It’s possible for your scalp to become very delicate and sensitive.
The symptoms of neuralgia might be brought on by specific actions, such as rubbing or rotating your head.
Occipital-neuralgia symptoms are comparable to those of migraines. The two disorders may coexist; some persons who have migraines may also have neuralgia.
The distinction between migraines and neuralgia is that migraines frequently come with light sensitivity and nausea. neuralgia could be the reason if you have sudden, intense pain in your scalp or back of your head but are not light-sensitive or queasy.
Occipital neuralgia diagnosis
A physical and neurological examination is the first step in diagnosing neuralgia. Diagnostic imaging techniques like computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) might occasionally aid in the diagnosis process.
Your physician could recommend that you see a specialist who can inject a steroid and local anesthetic into the region surrounding one of the occipital nerves. The presence of alleviation may support an neuralgia diagnosis.
To locate the occipital nerve trigger points causing your pain, the doctor might also use a portable ultrasound machine. Determining the trigger points might aid in therapy planning.
Depending on where your pain starts or where you experience it the most, you may be able to identify the locations of your neuralgia trigger points.
Treatment for occipital-neuralgia
In order to treat neuralgia, both the pain and its underlying cause must be addressed.
non-surgical interventions
The goal of nonsurgical therapies for neuralgia is to reduce discomfort and release tense muscles that may be aggravating the condition. Among them are:
• stretching and yoga on a daily basis; • heating pads applied to the scalp or other areas where pain is most felt
• Oral medications, such as muscle relaxants, anticonvulsants, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to relieve pain caused by neuralgia; • Injections of steroids, Botox, and/or nerve blocks to silence and numb overactive nerves; • Physical therapy or massage therapy to help relax muscles and ease pressure in the tender area.
surgical procedures
For occipital neuralgia, there are a number of surgical therapy options available if nonsurgical therapies are unable to relieve pain. Among them are:
the removal of specific nerve cells near the top of the spine in a ganglionectomy; the placement of electrodes under the skin near the occipital nerve to block the feeling of pain; the placement of electrodes between the spinal cord and vertebrae to block the perception of pain in the brain; and the use of an occipital release surgery to relieve pressure on the greater occipital nerve, the most common trigger point for neuralgia. When all other options have been exhausted, people frequently view this procedure as a final resort
Clinical studies for occipital neuralgia
To help medical professionals better understand occipital-neuralgia and its treatment options, individuals with the ailment may wish to explore taking part in clinical trials. The National Library of Medicine’s ClinicalTrials.gov database allows you to look for clinical trials related to occipital-neuralgia.