Headache

Most people experience headache, but often it is of a mild transient nature without the need for medical treatment.

Headache can be divided into different types. Primary headache occurs without demonstrable disease, while secondary headache has a demonstrable disease as its cause.

Migraine and tension-type headache are approximately equally common and affect women far more frequently than men.

Why do you get headache?

It is known that there are several areas in the head that can trigger pain:

• The skin
• Mucous membranes in the sinuses
• The muscles around the head
• Blood vessels outside the skull and inside the skull
• The skull itself
• Nerves from the neck

Possible causes depend on which type of headache is involved.

How is the diagnosis made?

The neurologist makes the diagnosis of headache based on the symptoms you describe:

If you have not already done so, the neurologist will often ask you to keep a headache diary in order to identify any factors that trigger your attacks.

In addition, the neurologist also performs a clinical examination. If further examinations are to be carried out, the purpose is to exclude secondary causes of the headache that need to be treated in themselves.

What can you do yourself about the headache?

When you have a headache, it is important to relax and take the medication that the neurologist has recommended or that you have experience helps best.

You can beneficially reduce your consumption of caffeine (coffee, tea, cola and chocolate), exercise daily and live regularly, especially with regard to meals and sleep. You may also experience a beneficial effect from practising relaxation such as yoga or possibly trying acupuncture and reflexology.

What types of headache exist?

Headache can be divided into different types. Primary headache occurs without demonstrable disease, while secondary headache has a demonstrable disease as its cause. Below you can read a little about some of the different types of headache.

Migraine

Migraine most often affects young to middle-aged people and more frequently women than men. A certain heredity of migraine can also be seen.

For more than 50 years it has been known that people with migraine excrete an increased amount of the naturally occurring signalling substance, serotonin, and that treatment with serotonin helps the pain.

The attacks usually occur as a unilateral headache, where 1 in 4 have warning signs (aura). The attacks last 4-72 hours, and occur at irregular intervals. Provoking factors are common, and are accompanied by light and sound sensitivity or by nausea/vomiting. The pain is often felt as pulsating and during the attack sound and light can be unpleasant. Physical activity worsens the headache. Read more here.

Cluster headache

Cluster headache is relatively rare and affects men 5-6 times more frequently than women. The attacks last 15-180 min, and often occur at night.

Cluster headache can be treated with inhalation of pure oxygen (from the emergency room or oxygen cylinders at home) or the common remedies for migraine.

Chronic headache

If you have headache for more than 15 days a month for a period longer than 3 months in a row, the condition is termed chronic headache.

Approximately 3 – 5% of the world’s population suffer from chronic headache, but these patients constitute 70 – 80% of the patients in headache clinics.

At CPH Privathospital our neurologists can:

• Treat any depression or anxiety disorder
• Treat preventively
• Help with cessation of any overuse of analgesic medication

Tension-type headache

Usually caused by stress and psychological factors and tight neck muscles. The pain is often on both sides of the head and is described as squeezing, pressing, compressing.

Receive professional and safe treatment at CPH Privathospital

At CPH Privathospital our treatments always take place at a high professional level. If you have questions you are always welcome to contact us.