As per recent research published in the European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, a combination of graston technique and exercise program can provide short-term pain relief, lower the frequency and duration of headache, and medicine use in patients with cervicogenic headache.

This randomized controlled single-blinded study included 60 patients (aged 35 to 50 years) with cervicogenic headache and divided into study group with graston technique together with exercise program, and control group with just exercise program. All the subjects received 3 weekly sessions for about four weeks. For assessing pain, the visual analogue scale (VAS) was utilized.

Statistically important differences were found in all the measured outcomes i.e. VAS, neck disability index (NDI), cervical range of motion (CROM), frequency and duration of headache, and medicine use (p< 0.05) supporting the graston group excluding neck extension following 2 weeks of the treatment. Statistically important differences were found in all the measured outcomes (p< 0.05) supporting the graston group after 4 weeks.

Even though the study results for NDI, and CROM were statistically significant, it is neither clinically pertinent change nor evidently outside the range of measurement error, as concluded.