A sentinel headache is a sudden, very strong headache that comes on without warning. It usually precedes a stroke or other type of brain bleed.

A sentinel headache is a sudden, intense headache. It can occur randomly with no other symptoms or specific areas of pain.

Many experts see sentinel headaches as a warning sign for a more serious condition — bleeding in the brain — but there are other possible causes, too.

This article will explore some of the potential triggers of a sentinel headache, what this kind of headache means for your overall health, and how it can be treated or prevented.

A sentinel headache is a sudden and very intense headache. Many people describe these as the worst headache pain. Research suggests sentinel headaches are far worse than a common headache, but not as intense as thunderclap headaches.

There are no official criteria to diagnose a sentinel headache or differentiate it specifically from other types of headaches. If you experience a sudden, intense headache, it’s best to seek an opinion from a medical professional.

Usually, the main features of a sentinel headache are:

  • sudden pain
  • pain that is difficult to pinpoint to a specific area of the head
  • a headache that’s unlike any you’ve had before
  • headaches not associated with specific activities, foods, or medications

Other possible, but less common, symptoms can include:

  • nausea or vomiting
  • vision changes
  • altered mental status or loss of consciousness

Sentinel headaches may go on for some time, even a period of several days or weeks, with varying intensity.

Sentinel headache vs. thunderclap headache

A thunderclap headache is another type of severe headache. It’s similar to a sentinel headache in the way it comes on suddenly and intensely. One study describes a thunderclap headache as “the worst headache” people have experienced, with pain intensity peaking in less than a minute and lasting at least 5 minutes.

It’s how quickly a thunderclap headache intensifies, though, rather than how painful it is overall that really distinguishes it from other headaches.

Sentinel headaches are a warning sign of something more significant to come.

This usually means a subarachnoid hemorrhage or a ruptured aneurysm. If symptoms similar to a sentinel headache occur, but it’s not followed by another health event and the patient has a normal medical work-up, then that headache was not a true sentinel headache.

About 15–60% of people who have a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) report having had a sentinel headache in the days or weeks leading up to that diagnosis.

In some cases, the sentinel headache first appears with minor blood leaking in the brain. It could end there, or be followed in the coming weeks with a larger, more serious bleed.

Headaches are a common trigger for visits to emergency departments, but there are many potential causes.

Your healthcare team will use your medical history, medication list, and description of symptoms to help make a diagnosis. Other symptoms like vision changes or even loss of consciousness will also be considered but imaging will help rule out serious medical issues.

Computed tomography and other forms of imaging studies of the brain can identify various types and locations of bleeding in the brain. It can tell if your sentinel headache was, in fact, a warning sign for a bleeding that can be diagnosed as SAH, aneurysm rupture, or stroke.

A lumbar puncture may also be used for someone presenting with a sentinel headache. This test can help evaluate subarachnoid hemorrhage.

If your sentinel headache is related to any type of bleeding in your brain, this is a medical emergency and requires immediate treatment. Aneurysms, SAH, and other forms of brain bleeds are treated by surgically repairing the ruptured blood vessels.

Sentinel headaches are usually a red flag for an impending medical emergency. For those people who have some degree of brain bleed after a sentinel headache, your prognosis will depend on things like:

  • where in your brain the bleeding took place
  • how extensive bleeding was
  • how long bleeding lasted
  • how quickly bleeding was repaired

Bleeding in the brain is usually referred to as a hemorrhagic stroke, and possible long-term consequences of a serious stroke can include things like:

  • loss of mobility
  • speech problems
  • swallowing problems
  • communication problems
  • cognitive changes

If you have a hemorrhagic stroke or any other form of bleeding in the brain, you need emergency medical care, as well as follow-up care to help you recover and rehabilitate.

A sentinel headache is a sudden intense headache that may very well be a red flag for a serious medical emergency. In many cases, it precedes a stroke.

These headaches may be difficult to distinguish from some other types of headaches but could happen in the days and weeks before a bleed in your brain. These bleeds, often called hemorrhagic strokes, require emergency medical treatment to avoid permanent brain damage or death.

If you develop a sudden, intense headache that is unlike any you have had before, seek medical care right away to rule out any kind of stroke or neurological emergency.