Migraine Treatment: The Disorder, Treatment Types And Neuromodulation Devices

Migraine is said to be the third most preventable illness as of 2021 by the Migraine Research Foundation. And yet, approximately four million adults around the world suffer from Chronic Migraine.

Migraine is a common impairing disorder that displays bouts of a unilateral, pulsating, and severe headache. The headache is accompanied by symptoms of vomiting, cutaneous allodynia, nausea, photophobia, and phonophobia. The root cause of migraine remains unknown but known causes like severe heat, bright lightning, and dehydration, among others, can trigger migraine.

Women are usually at a higher risk of developing migraine. Other risk factors include smoking, higher stress levels, and genetics. The diagnosis of migraine requires an examination of the family and medical history of the patient.

There are drugs available for both preventing and treating migraine. Some medications temporarily stop the symptoms while others like Motrin IB, Advil, and Triptans (Maxalt, Maxalt-MLT), work to alleviate the pain. Migraine preventive drugs consist of antidepressants and blood-pressure alleviating medications.

Migraine treatment options can be categorized as follows:

• Alternative Therapies (Acupuncture and Biofeedback).
• Pharmacological treatment.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
• Migraine Devices.

Migraine Medical Devices control the hyperactivity of the brain, thus offering preventive and acute treatment. These devices are known as Neuromodulation Devices, and they modulate or alter the central nervous system via non-invasive/invasive electrical or magnetic pulses. Many technologies are used in these devices, such as kinetic oscillation stimulation, occipital nerve stimulation, remote electrical neuromodulation, vagus nerve stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation, and transcranial magnetic stimulation.

Some of the key Migraine devices are as follows:

• Relivion (wearable) — By Neurolief Ltd.
• CEFALY (wearable) — By CEFALY Technology.
• tVNS® L (handheld) — By tVNS Technologies GmbH.
• gammaCore Sapphire (handheld) — By electroCore, Inc.
• Nerivio (wearable) — By Theranica Bio-Electronics Ltd.
• AnkerStimTM — By Medtronic.
• HeadaTerm (wearable) — By WAT Medical.
• sTMS mini™ (handheld) — By eNeura Inc.
• PainX™ tDCS (handheld) — By Soterix mEDICAL.
• Cerena (handheld) — By eNeura Therapeutics

Source: Neuromodulation Devices in Migraine — Key Developments and Companies, By Delveinsight.