Department Of Health

November 6, 2008

Headaches - Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Filed under: Uncategorized — hope @ 5:00 am
A headache is pain or discomfort in the head, scalp, or neck. Serious causes of headaches are extremely rare. Most people with headaches can feel much better by making lifestyle changes, learning ways to relax, and occasionally by taking medications. Headache causes Headaches can be triggered by a variety of factors. The most common cause of headaches is prolonged tension or stress. These are called tension headaches or muscle-contraction headaches. Virtually everyone suffers from this at some time. Muscles in your scalp, neck, and face tighten and contract, causing spasms and pain. Psychological factors such as anxiety, fatigue (e.g., eyestrain), and stress (e.g., long periods of concentration) and mechanical neck strain (e.g., working at computer terminal for prolonged periods) are often the culprits behind a typical tension headache. Many people believe that the brain itself is involved in headaches, but neither the brain nor the skull has nerves that register pain. The sources of head pain are the nerve endings in the blood vessels and muscles in and around the head. Pain may be felt when these tissues become stretched, inflamed, or damaged. Headaches can arise in blood vessels within the brain, as well as in the meninges (me-NIN-jeez), which are the sensitive membranes that cover the brain. Headache Symptoms There are many different types of headaches. Although not all headaches are the same, they all share at least one thing in common - they cause pain. But many headaches also cause other unwanted symptoms, including nausea and vomiting. This article addresses the most common headache symptoms associated with the different types of headaches. Migraine without aura is the most prevalent type and may occur on one or both sides (bilateral) of the head. Tiredness or mood changes may be experienced the day before the headache. Nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light (photophobia) often accompany migraine without aura. There are several types of migraine headaches, each with unique features. For example, some women get migraines before, during, or shortly after their menstrual period. Headaches: Treatment High-flow oxygen inhalation therapy, in which you breathe oxygen through a face mask to reduce blood flow to the brain and relieve headache pain. Around 7 out of 10 people treated with oxygen soon after the start of a headache get relief within 10 to 20 minutes.2 But you need to repeat the treatment when the next headache begins. Triptans (Imitrex, Zomig), which can be injected to reduce pressure and pain. These medicines can also be taken by mouth as a pill or sprayed in the nose. Prevention of Headaches Some forms of headache, such as migraine, may be amenable to preventative treatment. On the whole, long-term use of painkillers is discouraged as this may lead to drug induced headaches and "rebound headaches" on withdrawal.Caffeine, a vasoconstrictor, is sometimes prescribed or recommended as a remedy or supplement to pain killers in the case of extreme migraine. This has led to the development of paracetamol/caffeine analgesic.


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