The Effectiveness of Cervical Kinesio Taping in Migraine

Overview

Migraine is a common episodic headache disorder accompanied by neurological, gastrointestinal and autonomic changes.Migraine symptoms have a wide range, neck pain is seen in most migraine attacks, and accompanying neck pain is considered one of the important factors that increase migraine-related disability. It has been shown that various physical therapy methods applied to migraine patients with cervical myofascial pain reduce migraine pain and analgesic needs. One of the methods used in myofascial pain syndrome is kinesio taping and the effectiveness of cervical area applications has been shown in different studies.In this study, it was planned to examine the effect of kinesio taping applied to cervical trigger points on migraine symptoms in migraine patients.

The annual prevalence of migraine is approximately 15% and it is the second most common neurological disease worldwide. Migraine symptoms have a wide range, neck pain is seen in most migraine attacks, and accompanying neck pain is considered one of the important factors that increase migraine-related disability. In myofascial pain syndrome, active trigger points are considered as the source of pain and the treatment goal is to relax and inhibit these trigger points. It has been shown that various physical therapy methods applied to migraine patients with cervical myofascial pain reduce migraine pain and analgesic needs. In a study conducted with forty migraine patients, a significant decrease in headache parameters was reported with dry needling applied to the sternocleidomastoid muscle immediately after the procedure and at 1-month follow-up. Similarly, in migraine patients who received local anesthetic injection and topical analgesic treatment for cervical myofascial pain in addition to migraine prophylaxis, a decrease in attack frequency, severity and analgesic need was found compared to the control group.Kinesio taping is one of the most preferred conservative treatments for pain originating from the musculoskeletal system, and it is suggested that it provides an increase in blood and lymphatic flow by applying tension force on the skin with its elastic structure, and provides muscle relaxation with proprioceptive stimulation. In this study, it was planned to examine the effect of kinesiology taping applied to the cervical region on migraine symptoms in migraine patients.