Cervicogenic Headaches

If you frequently suffer from headaches, the problem may be in your neck. As experts in musculoskeletal care, we at Kosak Chiropractic are happy to assist people suffering from blockages in the cervical spine. But many people are unaware of how this may be able to relieve pain ranging from their lower jaw to the top of their head, which is why we wanted to explain what cervicogenic headaches are and how chiropractic can combat them.

Sensation in our faces comes from the trigeminal nerve. It emerges from the cervical spine, or neck region, and branches off to the eyes and forehead, maxilla, and mandible. If there is a compression in the cervical spine, pain may be referred to the trigeminal nerve and we would call it "cervicogenic." Compression could be due to swollen muscles, a herniated disc, or dislocated facet joints, among the more common reasons, and is often the result of whiplash. Pain may also radiate to a shoulder or arm, but will usually be limited to one side of the body.

Although whiplash is the most common cause of cervicogenic headaches, people who work with their heads down, such as hair stylists and craftsmen, and people who have bad posture while typing also risk straining their neck muscles. We’ll use manual examinations, range of motion tests, and imaging scans to determine whether a headache could be cervicogenic. If it is, we may employ chiropractic adjustments of the neck, which use gentle, controlled force to stretch the neck muscles and correct the position of the joints. We will also recommend therapeutic exercises that will strengthen the neck muscles to better support the spine and become less vulnerable to fraying.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Common Whiplash Treatments

Whiplash is a common kind of neck injury. It can take many forms, but it is often painful, and the pain may radiate. We offer several safe, complementary therapies for whiplash at Kosak Chiropractic in Fairfield, and are available for our patients during the coronavirus outbreak. But we need you to understand why if you may have suffered whiplash, you need to take it seriously.

 

You may have heard whiplash referred to as cervical acceleration-deceleration syndrome. That is because it is characterized by the microtears the soft tissues of the neck incur when a person’s head is whipped back and forth, as frequently happens during car crashes. Small tears in the muscles, ligaments, and spinal discs will cause the tissues to become inflamed and stiffen, limiting the neck’s movement. The pain may be throbbing, or it may feel like pins and needles and come and go. It may also travel along the neck muscles into the shoulders or up to the head.

 

We will diagnose the extent of a person’s whiplash injury through imaging and range-of-motion tests. Resting injured muscles too much risks that they will further deteriorate, which is why we will use the information we learn during the diagnosis to prescribe gentle stretching exercises, instead. We may also reduce stiffness by gently adjusting the neck and administering therapeutic massages. Whiplash symptoms may take a while to develop, but they respond better to treatment when caught early. If you’ve been in a vehicular crash or similar accident, schedule an appointment with us right away.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Whiplash Symptoms and Treatment

Kosak Chiropractic is readily available to you when accidents happen unexpectedly, such as a whiplash injury due to a sporting mishap or auto accident. According to Mayo Clinic, “whiplash is a neck injury due to forceful, rapid back-and-forth movement of the neck, like the cracking of a whip.” The sooner you come in to see your Fairfield chiropractor, the sooner we can get you on the road to recovery!

Symptoms of whiplash include:

- Neck pain and stiffness

- Worsening of pain with neck movement

- Loss of range of motion in the neck

- Headaches, most often starting at the base of the skull

- Tenderness or pain in the shoulder, upper back or arms

- Tingling or numbness in the arms

- Fatigue

- Dizziness

- Blurred vision

- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)

- Sleep disturbances

- Irritability

- Difficulty concentrating

- Memory problems

- Depression

We offer a variety of services to help manage pain and treat whiplash damage, such as chiropractic adjustments, therapeutic exercises, electric stimulation, and therapeutic ultrasound. If you are showing signs of whiplash for several days to a couple weeks after an accident, X-rays, CT scans, or MRIs are required to diagnose how severe the damage is.

Kosak Chiropractic is located on 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, in Fairfield, CA 94533. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please visit kosakchiropractic.com or call us at 707-426-1111.