What Are Headaches? What Causes Headaches?

Main Category: Headache / Migraine
Article Date: 13 Jun 2007 - 1:00 PST

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According to MediLexicon's medical dictionary, Headache means "Pain in various parts of the head, not confined to the area of distribution of any nerve". In fact, there are several different types of headaches. Headache is also known as Cephalalgia. Cephalalgia comes from the Greek kephale meaning "head", and algos meaning "pain". Some of the causes of headaches are benign while others can be medical emergencies. Headaches rank among the most common pain complaints.

Common types of headache:

Each of the links below goes to a medical dictionary definition on www.medilexicon.com.

• benign exertional headache
• bilious headache
• blind headache
• cluster headache
• coital headache
• drug-induced headache
• fibrositic headache
• histaminic headache
• Horton headache
• ice pick headache
• idiopathic stabbing headache
• medication-overuse headache
• migraine headache
• migraine without headache
• muscle contraction headache
• nodular headache
• organic headache
• posttraumatic headache
• reflex headache
• sick headache
• spinal headache
• symptomatic headache
• tension headache
• tension-type headache
• thunderclap headache
• vacuum headache
• vascular headache

Tension headaches

Tension headaches are the most common, and generally affect adults and adolescents - they can affect younger children, but this is not common. During a tension headache, there may be muscle tightness in specific parts of the head, scalp and/or neck - these areas are uncomfortable and often painful. Some studies, however, have indicated that muscle tightness is not as common among sufferers as was once believed.

People who suffer from tension headaches say they feel like a tight band or vice on the head. The pain is usually dull, and covers most of the head.

It was thought that tension headaches were mainly caused by tension that builds up in the scalp and neck muscles as a result of stress, depression, anxiety, or a head injury. However, the exact cause or causes are unknown. Recent research indicates that there does not appear to be any significant increase in muscle tension in people known to suffer from tension headaches.

Experts today believe that a change in certain brain chemicals may be the main factors that contribute to tension headaches. These chemicals are the ones that help nerves communicate, such as serotonin, endorphins, and several others. We are not sure why the levels of these chemicals change. We suspect that the fluctuations activate pain pathways to the brain and probably undermine our ability to suppress pain.

What causes tension headaches?

These factors are thought to contribute to tension headaches:

• Stress
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Bad posture
• Staying in one position for a long time
• Working in an awkward position for a long time
• Clenching one's jaw

Some people believe food allergies may be the main factor for some people. However, further studies are needed.

What is the treatment for tension headaches?

If you keep a diary it may help you identify your headache triggers. When a headache starts write down when it started, include notes of what you drank and ate during the previous 24 hours. Note down how long you had slept, whether it was a good night's sleep, when you slept. Record in your diary what was happening in your life immediately prior to the onset of your headache - were you under unusual stress? Write down how long the headache lasted, and if you can, what made it stop.

Some people find that taking a shower helps. While one person may benefit from a hot shower, others may find a cold one gives better results.

Some simple changes in lifestyle may reduce, and sometimes completely eliminate the recurrence of headaches. Getting enough sleep, doing plenty of exercise, stretching the neck and back muscles regularly may be all you need.

Are you eating properly? A good diet with plenty of fruit, vegetables, minerals and fiber will help you stay in good health and might help reduce the intensity and frequency of your headaches.

If you suspect your job may be at the root of the problem, try to find ways to make it less stressful - talk to your boss, or human resources manager.

If lifestyle changes and relaxation techniques are not enough, OTC (over-the-counter) painkillers will provide relief. These include aspirin, ibuprofen, or Tylenol (acetaminophen -> paracetamol).

If the tension headache is chronic (long term) a doctor might find that you are suffering from depression and prescribe an antidepressant. Some patients find that metaxalone (Skelaxin), a non-sedating muscle relaxant helps. In the most severe cases patients have improved when given a combination of butalbital and acetaminophen (Fioricet) or butalbital and aspirin (Fiorinal).

If you are lucky enough to have a good trainer, yoga or Tai Chi have been known to treat many types of headache effectively. It is crucial that the therapy is done with a well trained expert.

What is the outlook? Will I get better?

In the majority of cases, tension headaches respond well to treatment. They are unpleasant but are not harmful if they do not occur as a symptom of another condition. For treatment to be effective it is important that the patient adheres to the doctor's instructions. Non-compliance or non-adherence is one of the most common reasons for treatment failures - not only for tension headaches.

When tension headaches occur as a symptom of another condition they will generally get better when that underlying condition is treated successfully. If painkillers are used too often and for too long there is a risk the patient may develop rebound headaches.

News on headache / migraine

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Written by Christian Nordqvist