A recent discovery has been made that Botox injections, usually used to prevent wrinkles in adults, could prevent and weaken migraine symptoms in children. Migraines affect about 5 million children in the U.S.
Up until now, there had been very few treatments options for children suffering with migraines. Traditional treatment for children is over-the-counter pain medication or anti-seizure medication.
A study on the effect of botox for children with migraines was conducted at University of California by Dr. Shalini Shah. Shah found that the participants (who received botox injections every 12 weeks for a five year period) reported fewer migraines each month, as well as a much shorter duration of each episode (from 7-24 hours to only 15-30 minutes).
On the success of botox treatment Shah said: “The results are remarkable. Hopefully we’ll soon be able to offer it as a validated treatment.”