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This page contains all of the posts and discussion on MemeStreams referencing the following web page: Spinal Headache Prevention. You can find discussions on MemeStreams as you surf the web, even if you aren't a MemeStreams member, using the Threads Bookmarklet.

Spinal Headache Prevention
by Lost at 6:52 pm EDT, Jun 8, 2006

I have seen patients (not mine, of course) suffering from spinal headache after surgery or spinal tap. Their pain is excruciating. Even the strongest pain killers like morphine cannot alleviate their pain. Of course, I feel that it is far better to avoid the physiological mechanism which CAUSES the spinal headache in the first place.

The physical phenomenon which causes spinal headache is very simple: In an spinal tap or spinal anesthesia, when the needle pierces the inner tube ("dura") in the spine which contains the spinal cord itself, the spinal fluid in which the spinal cord is bathed can leak out (sort of like a leak in a garden hose). However, unlike a garden hose, there is not an infinite supply of spinal fluid, so the pressure of the fluid inside the dura drops as the fluid leaks out. The next part is key: There is a membrane at the base of the skull which separates the spinal fluid from the fluid in which the brain floats. Normally, the fluid pressures are balanced, and there is no problem. But, if spinal fluid leaks out through a needle hole, the pressures become imbalanced, and the cushioning effect of the fluid disappears and tension is applied directly to these nerves. The degree of pressure imbalance determines the degree of the headache. This part of the understanding of spinal headache is widely understood and undisputed.

I don't know if this works or not, but apparently I have one of these for more than a week now, so if it works then this man is a genius.


 
 
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