Charleston talks about his life and the reasons he chose MSU. He discusses how one can tell if they suffer from headaches or facial pain that they could treat themselves or if they require a specialist visit. He discusses stigmas that surround headaches and discusses research in progress and treatment options in the pipeline that could assist in the treatment of headaches or facial pain.

Highlights of conversations:

(:43) (:43) “I’m originally from Detroit Michigan, and I determined that I wanted to be neurosurgeon when I was writing the career paper I wrote in fifth grade.”

Lindsay Gluf-Magar

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Dr. Larry Charleston IV

(2:12) (2:12) “Michigan State University (2:30) is an excellent institution. We have the potential to add value to our community as well as the region by providing excellent headache treatment and research. We’re working towards becoming the top destination for headaches within the Midwest.”

(4:07) “If headaches are not responding to treatment and are becoming incapacitating or debilitating, or if you’re taking lots of different medicines to manage the pain, it might be the right time to get medical care.”

(5:31) (5:31) “Migraines are among the most frequent headaches that patients are seeking professional medical care for. Tension headaches are the most common however, many people do not seek medical attention for headaches like these.”

(5:50) (5:50) – 5:50 -. Charleston describes the stigmas around headaches.

(9:07) (9:07) – (9:07) -. Charleston describes the difference between headaches and facial pain. “Your face is a part of the head.”

(10:35) 10:35 – What is a specialty headache visit? “History is the most important factor in headache treatment, since there are over 300 headache diagnoses and treatment options will differ between headaches.”

(13:37) 13:37) – Is there new research coming up that you are excited about the treatment of headaches as well as facial discomfort? “Migraines constitute the 2nd most crippling neurological condition worldwide.”

Lindsay Gluf-Magar

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Dr. Larry Charleston IV, Russ White

(15:22) 15:22) – What are the potential challenges and possibilities in the treatment of headaches as well as facial discomfort? “There is a need for more awareness and more funding for research. If we consider federally-funded research dollars and the effect headaches can have on the lives of millions of patients and on their health, research into headaches should be funded 10x greater than it currently is.”

(18:30) 18:30 – “We’re ever-learning. We’re always looking for people to believe in themselves. A majority of the people who visit me are discouraged. If we don’t believe in hope there is nothing we can do. Headache disorders don’t define a person. There isn’t an answer however we do our best to manage the symptoms.”

Dr. Charleston’s clinic is located at the MSU Clinical Center on Service Road. For more details, call 517-353-8122, or visit healthcare.msu.edu.

MSU Today airs Saturdays at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 5 a.m. on WKAR News/Talk, and on Sundays are at 8 p.m. on WJR 760. WJR. You can find “MSU Today With Russ White” on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and wherever else you can get your shows.