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Sphenopalatine endoscopic ganglion block in cluster headache: a reevaluation of the procedure after 5 years

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Abstract

Cluster headache (CH) is considered the most painful form of primary headaches. It is characterized by severe unilateral pain, typically associated with autonomic manifestations and may be divided into an episodic and a chronic form. The latter is often resistant to a multitude of medication and is, therefore, very hard to treat. In 2002, our group developed a technique for the endoscopic sphenopalatine ganglion block that was able to ameliorate the symptoms in 55% of drug-resistant chronic CH patients. This paper is intended as an update on the technique as well as a comparison in effectiveness to our prior approach.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest related to the publication of this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unit of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Department, San Paolo Hospital, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

    Carlotta Pipolo, Paolo Lozza & Giovanni Felisati

  2. Neuromodulation Unit, Headache Centre, Neurological Department, Fondazione Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy

    Gennaro Bussone & Massimo Leone

Authors
  1. Carlotta Pipolo
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  2. Gennaro Bussone
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  3. Massimo Leone
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  4. Paolo Lozza
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  5. Giovanni Felisati
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giovanni Felisati.

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Pipolo, C., Bussone, G., Leone, M. et al. Sphenopalatine endoscopic ganglion block in cluster headache: a reevaluation of the procedure after 5 years. Neurol Sci 31 (Suppl 1), 197–199 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-010-0325-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-010-0325-2

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