Migraine Surgery Evidence

Take a look at the science-backed evidence supporting the safety and efficacy of migraine surgery.

Featured study

Efficacy of Migraine Surgery

The Evidence There is now a vast number of published studies about the safety and efficacy of migraine surgery. So much so that the American Society of Plastic Surgeons released a policy statement in 2018 testifying to the effectiveness of these operations in reducing migraine headache symptoms and frequency, and even complete elimination of headache pain. They now consider migraine surgery “a standard, accepted treatment”. If we take a look at a large 2016 study of 270 patients undergoing migraine surgery, 84% of patients reported an at least 50% reduction in migraine days per month, while 57% of patients experienced complete elimination of their headaches. These rates of improvement are fairly typical of other published migraine surgery studies. Link to…

Will I be ‘cured’?

- evidence

How much will my migraines improve? Will I be “cured”? We have a careful patient selection process, and we will only operate on you if we believe there is a significant chance of improving your headache symptoms (greater than 50% reduction in migraine frequency, duration, or severity). However, the diagnostic screening tests are never 100% accurate, and somewhere between one in ten to one in twenty patients will not experience any improvement following surgery. We will never promise a “cure” for your migraines, and it is important to us that our patients have realistic expectations before deciding to undergo surgery. While a small number of patients may find that their migraines are effectively “cured”, the majority of patients will not…

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