I’m conflicted by news of an implant for migraine care – it’s super exciting to think there might be another treatment option for those of us who struggle with chronic migraine…. but I’m also a little queasy about the idea of an implant in my head.
[Disclaimer – as always – please remember to speak to a healthcare professional about medical queries – my blogposts are only my best understanding of a complex scientific/medical subject that I am only just learning about.]
I can’t remember where I first saw the link to the idea of a brain implant, but it must have been around the time the news came out in mid-February 2025 (I told you I’ve been slowly falling behind on everything!)
Anyway – even without reading the article, the images that were floating around, combined with the title started to give me that queasy-excited feeling:
[Image source: First patient fitted with anti migraine implant in Dutch trial – DutchNews.nl]
[Image source: First patient in the Netherlands receives promising migraine implant in clinical study | Salvia News]
The picture implies the implant goes across the forehead… presumably beneath the skin… but was it also beneath the skull…???
Yikes.
When I started to go through the articles in more detail, it turns out “The implant, which consists of two thin electrodes embedded under the skin in the front and the back of the skull, was developed by Dutch company Salva BioElectronics, and works by sending electronic pulses to the nerves involved in migraine. […] The same method, called neuromodulation, has been used successfully in people with epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.” (Source here)
Looking up the Salva BioElectronics website they add: “Patients receive an external, wearable device that allows them to activate the therapy with the press of a button. […] Salvia’s unique implant is designed to reduce the frequency and intensity of migraine attacks by delivering gentle electrical pulses to the nerves associated with the condition.”
According to Doctor Frank Huygen on the website, “Our nervous system uses electrical signals to regulate how our body moves, feels, and functions” – but – “In migraine, these signals can become disrupted. Neuromodulation may help correct this and restore balance.”
If the sound of neuromodulation sounds familiar, it’s because it probably is. There are several devices for migraines which you can buy and wear (I haven’t tried any of them as yet) – they appear to be strapped to your arm or across your forehead.
On the Association of Migraine Disorders website they have a video about neuromodulation devices which opens with a graphic of the sorts of devices we’re talking about:
[Video source: Chapter 5, Episode 6: Neuromodulation Devices for Migraine Treatment – Association of Migraine Disorders]
As their website explains it: “Neuromodulation devices apply external electrical or magnetic impulses to reduce, eliminate or prevent migraine attacks. They are worn or held against different parts of the body to stimulate nerves or areas of the brain and nervous system involved in the migraine process.”
The upside of neuromodulation, according to the video includes help for people “with multiple comorbidities, with sensitivity to medications or their side effects, with or at risk for medication overuse headache, or those who prefer to avoid medications.”
The downside, however, is “they are not safe for everyone. Some devices are contraindicated for people with epilepsy, an implanted device or a history of stroke.”
[Disclaimer – AGAIN – always speak to your doctor before trialing any new treatment approach!]
I suppose transferring the wearable device to an implant is the next logical step. In the same way that diabetics used to use external devices to monitor their blood-sugar level and administer their insulin, there are now options in which the devices are effectively integrated into their bodies (if that makes sense!?)
Here, instead of wearing the device around your head or arm, and taking it on and off when you need it, the device is with you wherever you go, and ready to be turned on with the push of a button.
I’m excited that the options that are available to us are growing all the time… but… I remain a little queasy about the implanting aspect of it all.
I suppose if neuromodulation devices have been a godsend to you so far, then it makes sense to improve their wearability and accessibility, as it were, and take it up a notch… but I would think that you’d do well to try the take-on-take-off version for a while before you lined up for surgery.
But that’s just me.
You do you!
[It’s a little bit of a funny insight, that when you’re in the middle of a migraine episode, clutching your head and weeping into your pillow, you can hear yourself whispering “I’d do anything to get rid of this”… and then… when the pain has turned down a notch and is sitting in the bottom half of your pain scale, suddenly the “do anything” idea shifts and you realize that brain implants might be a tad too far!]
Two things I’ve definitely learned though over the last couple of years since being diagnosed with chronic migraine – living with migraines is miserable – AND – as bad as it is, we really are living in the best possible time to be diagnosed with migraine: the options available to us are increasing all the time!
Don’t give up peeps – there are always more things for us to try!
Take care taking care out there, Linda xx
PS: Here’s the articles if you want to read more (they seem to repeat the same source material and only change slightly between articles):
First patient fitted with anti migraine implant in Dutch trial – DutchNews.nl
First patient in the Netherlands receives promising migraine implant in clinical study | Salvia News
First patient in the Netherlands receives promising migraine implant in clinical study
The Mindful Migraine 
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