To reduce the frequency of migraine occurrence, many people take a drug called amitriptyline. Unfortunately, this antidepressant often causes unwanted side-effects, such as daytime drowsiness and weight gain. To see if the over-the-counter supplement, melatonin might serve as a comparable replacement for amitriptyline, researchers recruited nearly 180 migraine sufferers and placed them into three groups. The first group took amitriptyline over an 8-week period; while the second group took melatonin and the third, a placebo. In the end, melatonin outperformed amitriptyline by minimizing migraine frequency. It also outperformed amitriptyline by causing far fewer unwanted side-effects.
How it Applies to TMD
A frustrating condition that causes a myriad of life-altering symptoms, temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) can cause severe headaches. Often, people think they are getting chronic migraines, when they are actually experiencing a common symptom of TMD. If your migraine-like headaches are a result of TMD, neither amitriptyline nor melatonin is likely to help, since they cannot affect the source cause of the problem: your bad bite.
Migraines or Something Else?
When they get a migraine, most people experience visual disturbances in addition to severe pain. If you don’t notice blurriness, bright lights or some sort of an aura; you probably aren’t suffering from migraines. Additionally, if your head pain is accompanied with chewing difficulties, facial tenderness, jaw pain and/or jaw popping; you could have TMD. By evaluating your symptoms, Dr. Siegel can determine whether your headaches are a symptom of temporomandibular joint disorder or something else. He can also provide an effective treatment that can eliminate TMD-related headaches and other debilitating symptoms caused by this disorder. Contact his office today to learn more.
