How a Multidisciplinary Clinic Can Help With Chronic Headaches and Migraines

People who must live with chronic headaches and migraines often experience many setbacks in life due to pain and other symptoms. The Journal of Headache and Pain reports that headache disorders are one of the top 10 disability causes, and many people who seek treatment for them are misdiagnosed and don’t receive the right treatment for their conditions. A multidisciplinary clinic can provide patients with more accurate diagnoses and robust treatment plans to find mental and physical peace from headache disorders.

Metro Healthcare Partners can help you find a headache specialist in Brooklyn, NY, and other specialists to help you build a multidisciplinary team to cover every area of treatment for headaches. Learn about doctors in our directory by reaching out.

Understanding Migraines and Chronic Headaches

Chronic headaches can be any type of headache, including migraines, tension-type, or cluster headaches. Migraines are a type of headache often associated with sensitivity to light and may or may not be accompanied by an aura.

Headaches are considered chronic if you experience them more than 15 days each month for at least three months. Unfortunately, they’re difficult to treat as many primary care physicians aren’t equipped to handle such intricate issues, and neurologists sometimes don’t get the whole picture from brain scans.

What Is Multidisciplinary Headache and Migraine Treatment?

After conducting a study, Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain reports that patients who participated in multidisciplinary treatment programs for chronic headaches showed improvements after one year of treatment. Multidisciplinary treatment, or MDT, uses more than one doctor to treat chronic headaches since they affect more than just the head over time.

Allowing multiple physicians and therapists to work together to treat your headaches will allow you to receive comprehensive treatment for the mind and body. Headache disorders can be debilitating and greatly affect day-to-day life. Physical therapists can help you gain physical strength, while mental health professionals can help you gain mental strength.

Multiple doctors allow patients to avoid potential medication addiction and overdose, which is possible when those with headache disorders rely on daily pain medication for relief. 

Multidisciplinary Treatment Components

Neuroscience research suggests that multiple approaches to a chronic headache disorder will allow better recovery than if you only visit one. Every multidisciplinary treatment team will look different based on the patient’s needs, but the teams typically consist of:

• Headache or migraine specialist: A headache specialist can accurately diagnose chronic headache disorders, prescribe appropriate medication, and make lifestyle recommendations to suit the patient. They can make changes to the treatment plan as they discuss results and progress with other physicians in the program.
• Physical therapist: Physical therapists can treat pain in other portions of the body and teach patients how to stay active safely as they navigate their pain.
• Occupational therapist: Occupational therapy is similar to physical therapy, but the focus is on improving the patient’s ability to handle everyday tasks. If headache disorders make daily life a challenge, this type of therapy will be invaluable.
• Mental health clinician: If patients have mental health challenges with or because of their headache disorder, having a psychiatrist, psychologist, therapist, or other professional on the multidisciplinary team will help navigate the mental challenges they find along the way.
• Relevant professionals: No two MDT plans are quite alike. A patient’s team could include nursing staff, a pharmacist, an addiction therapist, a dentist, or any other physician who can help relieve pain and assist in overcoming challenges the headache disorder causes.

The Benefits of Multidisciplinary Treatment

Multidisciplinary treatment offers a wealth of benefits that patients shouldn’t miss out on when seeking treatment. A major benefit is having multiple outlets for pain management, reducing the chances of medication addiction or overdose. The Lancet Neurology reports that up to 4% of the worldwide population overuse pain relief medication, and about 1% of people in North America, Europe, and Asia develop headaches because of it.

Chronic headache disorders may lead to other problems in the body and mind that MDT can address, allowing patients to have access to full-body care. Some patients may find their headaches so debilitating that they can’t tend to other issues they have. A robust treatment team can make the treatment process more manageable, and can also help them learn how to cope with triggers to reduce the frequency of headaches.

Having multiple points of view on health conditions allows you to get a more accurate health assessment. One doctor may notice something that another missed; since it’s a multidisciplinary team, they can work together to share notes and find solutions.

Build Your Multidisciplinary Team With Metro Healthcare Partners

If you have chronic headaches or migraines and have yet to find relief, Metro Healthcare Partners can help. Our directory of physicians can help you find treatments for chronic pain, common auto accident injuries requiring a neurology specialist, and everything else you may need for neurological healthcare.

The doctors in our directory accept most insurance plans, including personal injury protection (PIP), workers’ compensation, and no-fault. We can help you find the right care that will work with your insurance, so be ready to provide your insurance information when you call.

Doctors may have same-day appointments available, so call Metro Healthcare Partners at (718) 550-2056 to start building your multidisciplinary team for chronic headaches and migraines today.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Doctor Should I See for Chronic Headaches?

See a neurologist for chronic headache treatment. They can run several scans and tests to determine the cause and best treatment methods for your condition.

What Doctor Can Help With Migraines?

Neurologists can help diagnose and treat migraines. They can scan your brain to find the cause of your condition.

What Can a Neurologist Do for Chronic Migraines?

A neurologist can treat your migraines and prevent them from returning via temporary or ongoing treatment based on your needs.

Can Chronic Headaches Be Fixed?

Treating the underlying cause of chronic headaches will stop them and prevent them from coming back. Some cases may focus on pain prevention if the root cause cannot be cured or treated.