Medical Daith or 'Medi-Daith'

A Medical Daith, or ‘Medi-Daith’, piercing passes through a ridge of cartilage immediately above your ear canal which is supplied by the Vagus Nerve. 

Electrical stimulation of the Vagus Nerve is already used by doctors to treat migraines and other headaches, as well as epilepsy, and works by calming the excitability of nerve cells in the brain. However these electrical methods can be expensive and difficult to use. 

The evidence strongly supports the Medical Daith working by continuously stimulating the nerve mechanically rather than electrically. This calms the brain and prevents a migraine attack from taking hold. Medical Daiths are available in London at the London Migraine Clinic, and the rest of England and Wales with our partnership with Blue Banana

General Information (more info is available on the FAQ page):

A Medi-Daith piercing passes through a ridge in the ear called the Crus Helis, just above the ear canal. This very small area of skin is supplied by the Vagus Nerve, a control nerve that has a calming effect on the brain.  Vagus Nerve Stimulation, or VNS for short, is an established medical treatment for migraine and epilepsy. Until now electrical VNS instruments have been too expensive, but this is changing with a Medi-Daith. The piercing remains in position all the time and it appears to provide continuous stimulation. It may even be more effective than the expensive electrical stimulators, though this needs confirmation with further research. However the area supplied by this nerve is small and easy to miss. The exact position of the nerve also varies from person to person, so it is important to measure the piercing position accurately.
 
A Medi-Daith is more that just a cosmetic daith piercing because it takes time and expertise for the piercer to measure the best position.
Our usual advice is to get Medi-Daith on the same side as the pain or throbbing sensation you experience during a migraine. However it appears that the side may be unimportant for some people, because the calming effect may work on both sides of your brain. 
 
If you experience a migraine on a specific side of your head then we’d advise you to opt for this side for your piercing. You may also want to consider which side you prefer to sleep on. If you experience migraines that are not specific to one side or occur on both sides then think about where in your head your migraines most commonly occur and where the pain feels the most intense.
 
Piercing both ears has been shown to give a better effect on your migraines, but one side may give enough relief. If you get some improvement from one piercing, but you feel you need more, then you can get the other ear pierced later. We generally recommend that you only have one ear pierced at a time. This will give the first piercing time to heal before having the second.

It varies for each person. Some find the daith piercing takes effect on reducing the severity and frequency of migraines immediately. Sadly, for about 10-20% of sufferers a Medi-Daith has little effect. We don’t understand why at the moment, and we hope that our future research at London Migraine Clinic will provide some answers. For people with a Medi-Daith, some say that the effects only last for a few months whereas for 40% say it gives long-term relief that reduces the severity of their migraines, and may even stop them completely. Just like treatments from your GP, there is no single treatment that works for all migraines.

Like any treatment, there are cases where a Medi-Daith makes no difference to the migraines. There is little evidence that it can the  them worse, but if it were to happen the piercing can be removed.
 
If you are considering trying a daith piercing to help with your migraines, then coming to a piercer with specialist equipment for locating the vagus nerve is important. The research surrounding migraines and daith piercings is relatively new and there is still a lot to learn about the treatment.

Medi-Daith available at Blue Banana

Through our partnership with Blue Banana Piercing Studio Med-Daith treatment is now available in many parts of England and Wales, and not just at the London Migraine Clinic.

Follow the link below for more details.

Booking your Medi-Daith

Join Our Medical Daith Research

The London Migraine Clinic is committed to conducting a thorough and reliable study on the effects of Medical Daith on migraines.

We are working with Blue Banana in a research study to measure the effect for 12 months after the piercing

Learn more about our research
Getting a Medical Daith