Can Alcohol Injections in the Eye Nerves Stop Headaches?

Last Editorial Review: 6/9/2017

Ask the experts

Have you ever heard of putting alcohol injections into the eye to permanently stop "optic nerve" headaches?

Doctor's response

The most common cause of headaches coming from the optic nerve is increased intracranial (inside the skull) pressure, which in turn can cause increased pressure on the optic nerve and result in pain. Treatment is focused on lowering the pressure.

Using alcohol, or other means, to destroy a nerve so that it cannot transmit pain information is well-described technique. Around the head, it has been used to treat problems associated with the trigeminal ganglion and its branches and even to treat pituitary problems. Alcohol would not be the current first choice for any injections around the head.

Injecting alcohol into the eye or the optic nerve for any reason would lead to blindness; one should not inject alcohol into these structures.

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References
Medically reviewed by John A. Daller, MD; American Board of Surgery with subspecialty certification in surgical critical care

REFERENCE:

"Overview of chronic daily headache"
UpToDate.com
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