Study Shows Relaxation Training Improves Symptoms 
Up to 50%

May 26, 2000 -- Migraines: They're not just for 
adults. In fact, experts have estimated that up 
to 5% of children struggle with this granddaddy 
of headaches. Unfortunately, if parents have them, 
chances are good that their children will get them, 
too. While most children's headaches are not dangerous 
or the result of severe disease, the pain, nausea, 
and light and sound sensitivity associated with them 
can be devastating for kids. 

Now researchers have found that biofeedback training 
can significantly reduce the number, intensity, and 
length of these headaches in children. 

Biofeedback is a training technique that enables a 
person to gain some control over involuntary body 
functions such as muscle tension or heart rate. In 
the case of headaches, biofeedback or relaxation 
training can help ease stress and reduce the chances 
of future migraines by helping the person raise their 
level of awareness about what's happening within their 
body and learning to increase voluntary control over 
the headache.

"This is very promising," Andrew M. Elmore, PhD, 
tells WebMD. "In my clinical practice, kids often 
do extremely well with biofeedback. ... It can teach 
them to calm their brains." 

As director of the Biofeedback Clinic at Mt. Sinai 
School of Medicine and Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York, 
Elmore says he's looking forward to the day when 
biofeedback is a first-line treatment for migraines. 
"We want to be able to say to our patient 'go learn 
this, try it yourself; it has no side effects. Then 
if it doesn't work, we can prescribe stronger medications.
'" he says. "I've seen children as young as eight 
do very well."

But some are concerned that studies like this may snub 
migraine medications, particularly in the HMO setting, 
because they can be costly. "Biofeedback definitely has 
its place in headache management, " says Michael Coleman, 
"but what I don't want to see is non-drug therapies like
this ending up on the front-burner." Coleman in founder 
of Migraine Awareness Group: A National Understanding 
for Migraineurs, or MAGNUM.

As a migraine sufferer since age six, Coleman vividly 
remembers being at school, looking out at the big, puffy 
clouds, and being in horrible pain. "The teacher said 
'put your head on your desk.' What would have been nice 
is if my headaches had been taken seriously. So many 
parents think their children have attention problems 
or need glasses. Parents need to read the warning signs 
and get the child to a doctor who understands migraines." 

"The issue of children's migraines is starting to get 
the attention it deserves," Coleman says. Medical education 
seminars, pediatric studies, and even prominent people in 
Washington are all bringing about awareness of migraines. 

"With better education, patients will have a better 
quality of life," he says. "Parents need to take this 
seriously and say to their kids 'let's learn about it 
and then attack it.' There's no doubt that a child who 
understands he can conquer migraines will be healthier 
and feel united with his family in the fight. That's 
very important for a child with a debilitating disease 
like this."

For more information about headaches, visit these web 
sites: MAGNUM at www.migraines.org; the American Council 
for Headache Education at www.achenet.org; and the 
National Institutes of Health Neurological Institute 
at www.ninds.nih.gov.