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When Is a Headache a Migraine?
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What Are the Different Types of Headaches?
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Definition
A headache is a pain in the head and neck region that may be either a disorder in its own right or a symptom
| HEADACHE THERAPIES | ||
| Description | Type | |
| Acupressure | Press pointer fingers beneath cheekbones and parallel to pupils (Stomach 3) for one minute. Squeeze fleshy area between thumb and pointer finger (Large Intestine 4) for one minute. | Sinus |
| Aromatherapy | Massage mixture of lavender oil and sunflower oil in temples, sides of eyes, behind ears, and on the neck. Do same using eucalyptus. | Migraine, tension, and sinus |
| Chiropractic | Spinal or cervical manipulation to realign posture. | Tension |
| Diet and exercise | Avoid chocolate, cheeses, citrus, red wine, and foods containing sodium nitrates or MSG. Exercise regularly. | Migraine |
| Herbal remedies | Feverfew, hawthorn, skullcap, ginger, goldenseal, valerian, passionflower, and cayenne. | Migraine and tension |
| Homeopathy | Belladonna, bryonia, kali bichromicum, and nux vomica. | Sinus and tension |
| Home remedies | Simultaneous ice pack/warm foot soak; drink three cold glasses of water; inhale pure oxygen. | Migraine and cluster |
| Massage | Scalp massage | All |
| Mind/body | Meditation and relaxation and biofeedback. | Migraine |
| Osteopathy | Neuromuscular manipulation and massage of head, neck, and shoulders. | All |
of an underlying medical condition or disease. The medical term for headache is cephalalgia.
Description
Headaches are divided into two large categories, primary and secondary, according to guidelines established by the International Headache Society (IHS) in 1988 and revised for republication in 2004. Primary headaches—accounting for more than 90% of all headaches—are not caused by an underlying medical condition. There are three major types of primary headaches: migraine, cluster, and tension. Secondary headaches are caused by another disease or medical condition, and account for fewer than 10% of headaches.
Rebound headaches, also known as analgesic abuse headaches, are a subtype of primary headache caused by overuse of headache drugs. They may be associated with medications taken for tension or migraine headaches.
Secondary headaches are classified as either traction or inflammatory headaches. Traction headaches result from the pulling, pushing, or stretching of pain-sensitive structures, such as a brain tumor pressing upon the outer layer of tissue that covers the brain. Inflammatory headaches are caused by infectious diseases of the ears, teeth, sinuses, or other parts of the head.
Headaches are very common in the North American adult population. The American Council for Headache Education (ACHE) estimates that 95% of women and 90% of men in the United States and Canada have had at least one headache in the past 12 months. Most of these are tension headaches. Migraine headaches are less common, affecting about 11% of the population in the United States and 15% in Canada. Several studies indicate that doctors tend to underdiagnose migraine headaches; thus the true number of patients with migraines may be considerably higher than the reported statistics. Cluster headaches are the least common type of primary headaches, affecting about 0.4% of adult males in the United States and 0.08% of adult females. Cluster headaches occur most commonly in adults between the ages of 20 and 40.
It is possible for patients to suffer from more than one type of headache. For example, patients with chronic tension headaches often have migraine headaches as well.
Causes
A person feels headache pain when specialized nerve endings, known as nociceptors, are stimulated by pressure on or injury to any of the pain-sensitive structures of the head. Most nociceptors in humans are located in the skin or on the walls of blood vessels and internal organs. The bones of the skull and the brain itself do
Tension headaches typically result from tightening of the face, neck, and scalp muscles as a result of emotional stress; physical postures that cause the head and neck muscles to tense (e.g., holding a phone against the ear with one's shoulder); emotional depression or anxiety; temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction; or arthritis of the neck. The tense muscles put pressure on the walls of the blood vessels that supply the neck and head, which stimulates the nociceptors in the tissues that line the blood vessels.
The causes of migraine headaches have been debated since the 1940s. Some researchers think that migraines are the end result of a magnesium deficiency in the brain, or of hypersensitivity to a neurotransmitter (brain chemical) known as dopamine. Another theory is that certain nerve cells in the brain become unusually excitable, setting off a chain reaction that leads to changes in the amount of blood flowing through the blood vessels and stimulation of their nociceptors. Specific genes associated with migraines were recently discovered. This finding suggests that genetic mutations may be responsible for the abnormal excitability of the nerve cells in the brains of patients with migraine headaches.
As of 2004, little is known about the causes of cluster headaches or changes in the central nervous system that produce them. Patients with cluster headaches are advised to quit smoking and minimize their use of alcohol because nicotine and alcohol appear to trigger these headaches. The precise connection between these chemicals and cluster attacks is not yet completely understood.
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Author Info: Rebecca J. Frey PhD, The Gale Group Inc., Gale, Detroit, Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine, 2005 |
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