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A migraine can make it difficult to work, drive, sleep or function normally. Sanova provides same-day migraine treatment and assessment for appropriate headaches and migraines.
A familiar migraine pattern is different from a new, sudden, or substantially different headache. These factors help guide the conversation with your clinician:
When and how the headache started — sudden or gradual.
Whether this matches your usual pattern or feels different.
Weakness, numbness, speech changes, or confusion.
Vision loss or major visual disturbances.
Whether the headache followed a recent head injury.
Relevant blood pressure history or current readings.
Examples include:
Migraines can be accompanied by nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light or sound.
A clinician considers:
You don't have to ride out a migraine at home in a dark room, and you don't have to sit for hours in an emergency room to get IV treatment. Sanova Urgent Care on North Oracle Road treats migraine attacks and other headaches the same day, on a walk-in basis, for patients from Catalina, Oro Valley, SaddleBrooke, Rancho Vistoso and Sun City Oro Valley — with the same injectable and IV medications used in the ER, at an urgent care copay.
Once a provider confirms the diagnosis and checks your blood pressure and neurologic exam, treatment usually begins within minutes: an injectable or IV anti-inflammatory such as ketorolac, an anti-nausea medication (which also relieves migraine pain), and a liter of IV fluids if you've been vomiting or are dehydrated. Most patients feel clear relief within 30 to 60 minutes. You'll leave with a plan for the next attack — including a triptan prescription or refill if you need one.
A tight band across the forehead, pressure behind the eyes or a knot at the base of the skull — usually from stress, posture, screen time, jaw clenching or poor sleep. We treat with anti-inflammatories and, when neck muscles are involved, a short course of muscle relaxant, and we look at the triggers you can actually change.
Facial pressure, congestion, post-nasal drip and pain that worsens when you bend forward point to the sinuses. We distinguish a viral sinus headache from a bacterial sinus infection, treat with decongestants, nasal steroids or antibiotics when they're warranted, and check for the migraine that often masquerades as "sinus."
From May through September this is one of the most common headaches we see — after hiking Catalina State Park, golf, pickleball, yard work or a day at the pool. Vital signs and a quick hydration assessment confirm it, and a liter of IV fluids with electrolytes resolves it fast. See IV hydration.
A dull headache at the back of the head, often in the morning, can be the first sign of uncontrolled blood pressure. Every headache visit here includes a blood pressure check; if it's elevated, we evaluate you the same day and coordinate with your primary care doctor. See high blood pressure care.
Taking over-the-counter pain relievers or triptans more than two or three days a week can cause the daily headache it's meant to stop. We treat the current headache, explain the pattern, and send a summary to your primary care doctor so the cycle can be broken safely.
Check in (or pre-register online before you arrive), vital signs and blood pressure, then a provider takes your history — when the headache started, whether it matches your usual pattern, what you've taken, and any nausea, light sensitivity, vision or neurologic symptoms. A focused neurologic exam follows. Treatment starts in the exam room; if you're getting IV medication or fluids you'll rest in a quiet, dimmed room while it runs, usually 30 to 45 minutes. Total visit time is typically under 90 minutes.
If your triptan, anti-nausea medication or preventive has run out and your prescriber is booked out or out of state, our providers can evaluate you and write a bridge refill. We do not refill controlled substances. Learn more about prescription refills at Sanova.
A migraine or headache visit is billed as an urgent care visit — your plan's urgent care copay, typically far less than an ER visit for the same IV treatment. We accept Medicare, Tricare, UnitedHealthcare, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, AHCCCS and most major plans, and post self-pay prices so there are no surprises. Patients come to us from Catalina, Oro Valley, SaddleBrooke, Rancho Vistoso and Sun City Oro Valley. Related: nausea, vomiting and dehydration · all walk-in services · meet the providers.
Everything you need to know before your visit. Can’t find your answer? Call us at (520) 232-2525.
Yes. Migraine is one of the most common reasons people walk into Sanova. Our providers confirm the diagnosis, then treat the attack on site — usually with an injectable or IV anti-inflammatory, an anti-nausea medication and IV fluids, sometimes called a “migraine cocktail” — so most patients leave with real relief. We can also prescribe or refill your triptan or preventive medication (we do not refill controlled substances).
Tell us. A headache that is new, sudden and explosive, follows a head injury, or comes with weakness, numbness, speech or vision changes gets an immediate assessment — blood pressure, neurologic exam and vital signs — and we’ll direct you to the right level of care right away. For headaches that fit your usual pattern, or new headaches without those features, we evaluate and treat you here the same day.
After a provider confirms it’s a migraine and checks your blood pressure and neurologic exam, treatment typically starts within minutes: an injectable or IV anti-inflammatory such as ketorolac, an anti-nausea medication that also eases migraine pain, and a liter of IV fluids if you’re dehydrated or have been vomiting. Most patients feel meaningful relief within 30 to 60 minutes and go home with a plan for the next attack.
Yes. If your triptan, anti-nausea medication or preventive has run out and you can’t reach your prescriber, our providers can evaluate you and write a bridge refill (no controlled substances). If your current medication isn’t working, we can treat the attack and discuss options to take back to your primary care doctor or neurologist.
Very often, yes — especially from May through September. Dehydration headaches are common after hiking, yard work, golf or a day at the pool, and they respond quickly to IV fluids and electrolytes. We check your vitals and hydration status and treat on site.
It can. A dull headache at the back of the head, especially in the morning, is sometimes the first sign of uncontrolled blood pressure. Every headache visit at Sanova includes a blood pressure check, and if it’s elevated we evaluate you the same day and coordinate with your primary care doctor.
Both are treated here. Sinus headaches with facial pressure, congestion and post-nasal drip may need decongestants, steroids or antibiotics if a bacterial sinus infection is likely. Tension-type headaches — a tight band across the forehead or the back of the neck, often from stress, posture or screen time — respond to anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants and trigger review.
We can treat today’s headache and check for the common causes of daily headache — medication-overuse (rebound) headache from frequent use of pain relievers, uncontrolled blood pressure, poor sleep, dehydration or caffeine patterns. Chronic daily headache does need a longer-term plan, so we’ll send a summary to your primary care doctor or help you find a neurologist.
A migraine visit is billed as an urgent care visit — your plan’s urgent care copay, typically a fraction of an ER visit for the same treatment. We accept Medicare, Tricare, UnitedHealthcare, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna, Cigna, Humana and most major plans. Self-pay prices are posted on our insurance and costs page, and IV medications or fluids are itemized up front.
Yes. Our providers see kids and teens with migraines and headaches, including the ones that come with stomach pain and nausea. Treatment is dosed by age and weight, and parents can be seen in the same visit.
Further reading: Migraine (MedlinePlus).
