BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Nearly one out of every six Americans suffers from migraine headaches. Research has shown that one cause for the painful headaches is irritation in certain nerves in the face.

Doctors have said some patients experience migraine relief after receiving Botox injections which paralyze the facial muscles causing the aggravation.

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University set out to determine if a surgery that incapacitated these muscles could relieve the migraine symptoms. Patients were randomly assigned to receive the forehead surgery while others were given a fake surgery.

A year after the procedure, 57 percent of patients receiving the "actual" surgery reported complete migraine relief. But, even among those who received the fake surgery, almost 60 percent also reported some reduction in their migraine pain.

Though a strong placebo effect is not uncommon among migraine treatments, doctors said further research is necessary to determine the full potential of the procedure.