HEADACHE

HEADACHE HEADACHES

It is a condition of pain in the head. It is one of the commonest types of illness and almost everyone has experienced headache in their life. There is a wide variety of causes of headaches like hypertension, sinusitis, eye troubles, cervical pain, brain tumors, meningitis, fever etc

TYPES OF HEADACHES

1. Muscular headaches : These headaches arise from tension in muscles of neck and face. The pain is often described as a constant pressure, as if the head were being squeezed in a vise. The pain is frequently present on both sides of the head. Massage can be very good for releiving such type of headaches.

2. Cervicogenic : These headaches originates from disorders of the neck,. Cervical headache is often increased by neck movement and sustained awkward head positioning. It is often accompained by restricted cervical movement and pain radiating to arm.

3. Inflammatory: These headaches are symptoms of other disorders, like sinusitis, meningitis, encephalitis etc.

4. Vascular: The most common types of vascular headache are due to hypertension and migraine.

MIGRAINE

It is a condition which is characterized by severe headache usually in one or both sides of the head. Migraine which occurs in episodes is usually accompanied by nausea, hypersensitivity to light and noise.
The word Migraine is French in origin comes from Greek word hemicrania which means one half of the head. Women are affected three times more often than men. This has been related to the hormonal changes occurring in females during their lifetime.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:

An attack of migraine can be divided into four parts:

• Prodrome : This includes symptoms experienced by patients hours or days before an attack of headache. These symptoms include irritability, depression, tiredness, yawning, constipation, stiffness of neck etc.
• Aura : This includes symptoms experienced just before an attack of migraine headache. They appear gradually over 5 to 20 minutes and generally last less than 60 minutes. The symptoms include foggy vision , colored vision, bright lines in front of eyes, sensation of pins or numbness on body , vertigo, loss of smelling power, nausea/vomiting and photobhobia are some symptoms experienced by differnet patients.
• Pain phase : Usually the headache is in one half of the head. It increases gradually and lasts from 4 to 72 hours. However the intensity, duration and frequency of pain vary from person to person. The headache can be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, vertigo, pallor of face, loss of appetite, sensitivity to smells, noise and light etc.
• Postdrome : These are the symptoms occurring after an attack of migraine. These include mood changes, depression, tiredness, lethargicness, loss of appetite etc