Can a Deviated Septum Cause Headaches and Migraines? (photo)

The scan shows at least a bit of right sided septal "spur".  This is the bony part of the septum.  Is this more severe on other cuts of the MRI?  It is certainly thought that a severe enough spur can cause "contact point" headaches due to the deviated area actually touching the lateral nasal wall.  This might happen if you had a cold that caused the mucosa in the opposing areas to swell and then be physically contacting each other with some pressure.  I have had many patients have relief of symptoms like you describe after septoplasty to remove a bony spur.  The question in your case is whether the spur is severe enough to be causing the problem.  You should have an ENT take a look at the whole scan and probably put a scope in your nose to check it out.  One test that I have patients try is to put Afrin in the nose when they are having an episode.  If Afrin helps, this may be diagnostic of a nasal source of the pain.  Good luck!


 

Generally speaking a deviated septum will not cause facial pain.  The main symptom of a septal deviation is nasal blockage.

Some unusual migraines can have a "trigger" localized to a sinus cavity - operating on the sinuses can make the headaches worse (!)