Myofascial Pain Cause Headache?
Myofascial trigger points in the muscles of the scalp, jaw, neck, shoulders and upper back refer pain to the head and face. These illustrations are from Travell and Simons medical text book. The “x’s” represent the locations of trigger points, and the red dots illustrate the locations of referred pain. This first diagram is of the sternocleidomastoid muscle. Notice that it causes pain in forehead, sinus, ear and back of the head areas. Myofascial trigger points in the muscles under the back of the skull radiate pain to the back of the head, and around to the forehead. These trigger points cause tension headache and migraine headache. Myofascial trigger points in other muscles in the back of the neck cause a slightly different pain pattern. Notice how these pain patterns overlap to some degree. The myofascial specialist understands this and will know these pain patterns and how to find your most active trigger points. Myofascial trigger points in the muscles of the scalp and f
