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Headache is a worldwide problem that affects people regardless of geographic area, nationality, income level and age.
The condition of people who endure this painful, depriving them of the opportunity to live their usual lives, work, study, is extremely difficult. It occurs against the background of primary headache: migraine, cluster pain and tension headache.
Only 10% of the population is unfamiliar with this painful condition, 90% had to endure the symptoms of headaches. Such disappointing data belong to WHO statistics. Her studies also showed that 20% of patients suffer from pain of a permanent nature. There are three times more women living with this severe problem than men.
The WHO estimates that the prevalence of headache is 50%. From 50% to 75% of the total population of the planet from 18 to 65 years old experienced recurrent headaches, and more than 30% of them sought help with suspected migraines. Studies also show that up to 4% of adults experience pain in the head area from 15 or more days per month.
Headaches are a global problem that scientists in different countries are working on.
Often, headaches are a kind of signal from the body about the presence of serious diseases. Therefore, experts categorically recommend that if a pathological condition occurs frequently, consult a doctor.
Primary types of headache
There are several types of headaches. According to the international classification, there are fourteen varieties. But that’s not all – each type is divided into forms. All types of headaches are primary and secondary. The first case combines pains that appear on their own, the second is the result of an existing disease.
Headache of tension
This is the most common type and occurs in 90% of people. Patients begin to feel a bursting, tension or squeezing of the upper part of the head in the head area. Often people compare the state with that as if they were wearing a helmet. Among specialists, this factor was called the “neurasthenic helmet” – the cause of such pains is neuroses. The mild form is characterized by the appearance of episodic pain, but when a person has to experience attacks more than fifteen times a month, then all the signs of a chronic course of the disease are “on the face”.
Typical signs. Basically, these pains are mild or moderate during the day, but in the evening the intensity of sensations increases. The period of manifestations can be from 30 minutes to several days. In addition, a person experiences rapid fatigue, his sleep / wakefulness rhythm is disturbed, sometimes there is a feeling of a lump in the throat.
What contributes to the emergence? The spinal muscles, cervical, eye, facial are overstrained. The problem is aggravated by stressful situations (unstable situation in the family, at work, illness of loved ones, etc.), exhausting work without proper rest, poor sleep, cold or heat, indiscriminate use of analgesics or psychostimulants, plus malnutrition or starvation. Another cause of headaches can be a hormonal imbalance.
How to treat this type of headache?In this situation, the appearance of malaise is a natural reaction of the body to endless tension. Relief will come immediately if a person begins to lead a healthy lifestyle: he regulates physical activity, spends more time in the fresh air, undergoes a massage course, and independently performs special exercises for the shoulders and neck. It is necessary to learn how to level stress: go in for swimming or other sports, travel, spend evenings with friends, get involved in interesting things – you don’t need everyone at once, you need to choose the most appropriate activity.
Of the drugs, relaxants can help you: mydocalm, sirdalud.
In the presence of severe pain, the use of painkillers will be required, in some cases, the participation of antidepressants will be required.
Migraine
For more than three thousand years, doctors have known this disease, the causes to this day have not been unequivocally determined.
Main signs. Intense pain can last not only for hours – for days. It exhausts a person and, which is typical, is practically not amenable to medical treatment. Very sharp pain manifests itself in one half of the head (from the Greek – “hemicrania”), concentrated in the temple, eye or forehead. A person becomes irritable, exhausted, intolerant of bright light, reacts sharply to loud sounds, and is disgusted by various smells. The patient develops dizziness, nausea, coordination is disturbed.
A few hours or even days before the onset of the pain phase, working capacity and mood worsen, warning symptoms appear: drowsiness, yawning, nausea, pallor and indifference.
Causes. Little is known about the biochemical mechanisms of seizures. Presumably, the appearance of this disease is preceded by a violation of vascular tone. A number of factors can cause this condition:
Transferred stress.
Excessive physical activity.
Sudden temperature changes.
Use of inappropriate medications.
Violation of sleep rhythms (lack of sleep and overabundance affect equally negatively).
Alcohol abuse.
Food can provoke seizures: chocolate, nuts, cheese, citrus fruits and others. It should be noted that fasting and frequent snacking are also unacceptable for migraines.
Hormone fluctuations: menopause, pregnancy, PMS, birth control pills, ovulation.
Quite an impressive list, but each person is predisposed to individual factors that are determined by trial. However, not everything is simple here either: a certain provoking factor is not always the cause of an attack!
Methods for the treatment of migraine. Treatment of this type of headache is aimed at stopping the attack at the very beginning. For this, the doctor selects the appropriate drugs. Since migraine is difficult to treat, it is very difficult to overcome the pain during the period when the attack has already developed. All efforts are directed to alleviate the condition, which can help: taking a warm bath, a darkened room, eliminating loud sounds, special herbal teas, acupressure.
Treatment statistics are not encouraging: only 10% of patients can stop the attack. At the time of a migraine attack, triptans (Zomig, Sumatriptan, etc.) effectively act. If after taking the desired effect is not achieved, then you can additionally take anti-inflammatory non-steroidal drugs (Diclofenac, Ibuprofen).
Eliminating the pain symptoms of migraine is very difficult, but you can’t do nothing. A person who is aware of his illness can prevent an attack by working on the organization of sleep, adjusting his diet, and minimizing the consequences of stressful situations. It is very important to find a way that is acceptable for your body!
Cluster headache
This type of headache is rare, more common in men under the age of forty.
Signs indicating a cluster headache. Pulsating acute pain begins its manifestation from the eye area, then spreads to the temples or forehead. Attacks are very painful, but short-term occur in the form of clusters (series). It is possible that there may be redness of the eyes, a runny nose, tearing. Headache can occur even at night or in the morning. Such attacks last from 15 minutes to an hour, repeating up to 8 times a day. This condition can be once a week or once a month. The pains appear without warning and suddenly disappear, sometimes the interval between attacks can be several years.
The reasons for the occurrence. Experts call pathologies in the vascular system the causes of cluster headache. The episodic appearance and sudden disappearance of pain makes treatment difficult.
How is cluster headache treated? Inhalation of oxygen is recommended to reduce acute symptoms, in 70% of patients the attack is eliminated within a short period of time. It is not recommended to take analgesics, their effect will come later than the series of pain has passed. It is possible to take fast-acting drugs: Ergotamine, Lidocaine, Somatostatin, but only under the supervision of a doctor. Wrong use will not bring the desired effect. Therefore, treatment for cluster pain and prescribing drugs is the lot of the attending physician.
Secondary headaches
Headaches that appear in a person due to the presence of any pathology belong to this group. To eliminate them, it is necessary to treat the underlying disease. The four main types are considered the most common:
Headache due to infection
This type of headache is the result of the action of toxins released by pathogenic microorganisms. For example, pain during the flu or a respiratory disease is not very intense, it is felt in the area of the eyes, temples, forehead.
A person may feel relief after taking anti-inflammatory and pain medications. Pulsating, sharp pain in meningitis is growing in nature, from a certain point it becomes unbearable. It is possible to treat such a severe form after determining the type of infection that is the cause of the disease. Prescribe drugs to eliminate headaches, only a doctor should.
headache sinus pain
This type of headache is typical in the presence of sinus diseases, it can occur, most often, with sinusitis or frontal sinusitis. The pain appears in the upper front of the head, under the eyes, intensifies during head tilts and other sudden movements.
The inflammatory process of bacterial, viral or allergic origin is the cause of pain.
To get rid of the disease, it is necessary to eliminate provoking diseases. For this, vasoconstrictor drops are used, which reduce swelling of the mucous membrane, sinus evacuation of sinus accumulations is carried out.
When diagnosing bacterial sinusitis, antibiotics are prescribed, and if allergies are present, antihistamines are prescribed. A doctor can establish a diagnosis, choose the necessary therapy, self-treatment will not be beneficial.
Occipital headache
This type of pain is of a very different nature: dull or sharp, bursting or throbbing, in addition, the symptoms can be both permanent and periodic.
There are many reasons for the appearance of such pains, but the following are especially common: diseases of the cervical spine, including osteochondrosis, occipital neuralgia, muscle tension arising from aggressive physical activity. Also, the cause of occipital headache can be hypertension, arterial spasm, increased intracranial pressure. An uncomfortable posture, malocclusion, etc. can affect the cause of discomfort. The method of pain localization depends on what is the cause. So cervical osteochondrosis is a source of pain in the temporal part of the head, neuralgia provokes paroxysmal symptoms, spondylosis leads to almost constant pain.
In order to alleviate the patient’s condition, specialists conduct an examination, the results of which make it possible to establish the cause of the headache. When diagnosed with neuralgia, spinal disease, stress, it is recommended to undergo a course of therapeutic massage and special physical education, physiotherapy. The pain caused by the bite is eliminated by the orthodontist. Regardless of the reasons, the patient’s condition can be alleviated with warm herbal tea, applying a warming compress to the back of the head, and fresh air.
Head pain of vascular origin
This type of headache is pulsating in nature, which occurs in the temples or the back of the head. Its appearance is the result of a spasm of cerebral vessels and a violation of blood supply, as well as an expansion of the venous network with insufficient outflow of blood.
Vascular headache is a consequence of hypertension or hypotension, thrombosis, or temporal arteritis. A different disease predetermines the category of headache of vascular origin. It has been established that increased cranial pressure provokes squeezing morning pain, which is aggravated by movement. Arthritis causes throbbing acute pain in the temples, radiating to the neck, shoulders, aggravated by chewing.
Therapy depends on the disease that has become the source of the headache.
Diagnostics
The patient’s complaints of headache is the reason for the examination in several stages. The doctor interrogates the patient, finds out the nature of pain sensations, their duration and localization, determines the provoking and concomitant factors. Sometimes a primary diagnosis is sufficient, which is determined after examination by specialists: a neurologist, an otolaryngologist, a dentist, an oculist. But in most cases, it is necessary to undergo a complete medical examination:
EEG — electroencephalography – according to its results, the state and work of the brain as a whole can be seen, deviations from normal functioning are determined, vascular lesions of the brain, tumors, hematomas are detected
X-ray – done to determine trauma, hydrocephalus, sinusitis.
MRI — Magnetic resonance imaging recommended for detecting chronic and acute cerebrovascular accidents, tumors, consequences of stroke, sinusitis and a number of other diseases.
CT — CT scan – gives a “picture” of the presence of hemorrhages, changes in the structure of the brain tissue, cerebral vessels. CT is used to detect tumors, thrombosis, atherosclerosis, cysts, aneurysms.
ED — electromyography – serves to establish diseases of the neuromuscular system, to determine damaged nerves.
Ultrasound – ultrasound diagnostics head is prescribed to confirm the diagnosis of atherosclerosis, in the presence of problems with blood vessels, pathology of blood flow, aneurysms.
Laboratory research methods the necessary measures to detect inflammation and infections in the patient, autoimmune processes and to determine the level of cholesterol.
Medicines for headaches
Paracetamol (acetaminophen). The drug belongs to the group of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs. You should not look for something new if it relieves a headache. (on the topic: simple painkillers)
Relaxants: If the headache is caused by prolonged sitting at the workplace (tension pain), relaxants will be most effective in this case. These include: mydocalm, sirdalud.
NSAIDs – non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: Ibuprofen (Mig, Nurofen, Faspic), Diclofenac (Voltaren), Acetylsalicylic acid.
Combined analgesics. There are a lot of them based on different combinations of NSAIDs, antispasmodics, paracetamol and caffeine to increase the analgesic level. These are citramon, pentalgin, solpadein, novigan. They work with more effect than pure drugs, but they are less safe.
Triptans. They are prescribed only with a confirmed diagnosis – migraine: Sumatriptan (imigran, amigrenin, trimigren), eletriptan (relpax), zolmitriptan (zomig), eletriptan (relpax).
[Video] Dr. Evdokimenko – types of headaches, how and what is the best way to relieve a headache?