Chronic daily headaches are defined as tension-type headaches or migraines that occur more than 15 days a month. Chronic headaches or migraines can be caused by a number of factors. Those causes could include head trauma, illness and infection, dietary habits, genetic factors, overuse of certain pain medicines, coexisting psychiatric problems and, on more rare occasions, brain problems. Chronic headaches or migraines can occur in children or adults.
The symptoms experienced by children and adults not always the same. As an example, adults can often experience migraine pain for at least four hours, while a migraine in children could last for a shorter time period. However, the symptoms in children can still be severe. Symptoms of migraines in children can include vomiting, light sensitivity, and abdominal pain. Tension headaches can often cause soreness in neck or head muscles.
Our Team
An experienced, interdisciplinary care team works with each patient and family to manage a child's pain by promoting healthy daily functioning and pain coping skills using an interdisciplinary rehabilitation model. Our team includes:
- Pediatric pain fellowship-trained physician
- Child psychiatrists
- Pediatricians
- Pediatric rehabilitation physicians
- Pediatric psychologists/cognitive behavioral therapists
- Physical therapists
- Neuropsychologists
- Occupational therapists
- Social workers
- Care coordinators
- Case managers
- Educators
- Child life specialists
- Nurses/nurse practitioners
- Therapeutic recreation specialists
Our Treatment Approach
We offer a multimodal approach to pain management that includes:
- Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (e.g. deep controlled diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, interactive distraction, guided visual imagery, cognitive restructuring, biofeedback, mindfulness, meditation)
- Physical Therapy (functional, manual and visceral therapies, heat/cold)
- Occupational therapy (activities of daily living)
- Non-narcotic pain medications
- Interventional pain procedures under sedation
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation
- Other novel and emerging treatment modalities for pain management
As one of the few hospitals in the country to offer interventional pain services for children guided by imaging in an operating room, we offer the following procedures:
- Epidural steroid injections
- Facet joint injections
- Sacroiliac joint injections
- Piriformis injections
- Muscle and joint injections
- Occipital nerve blocks
- Abdominal blocks (e.g., transverse abdominis plane [TAP] and rectus sheath blocks)
- Intercostal nerve blocks
- Sternum injections
- Bursa injections
- Scar injections
- Peripheral nerve blocks
- Trigger point injections