Headache
A headache is pain in the head or upper neck. The two major types of headaches are primary headaches, which are not associated with a medical condition or disease, and secondary headaches, which are caused by an injury or underlying illness, such as a concussion, bleeding in the brain, an infection or a brain tumor. Headaches are a very common condition that most people will experience many times during their lives. The main symptom of a headache is a pain in your head or face. This can be throbbing, constant, sharp or dull. primary headache isn’t a symptom of an underlying disease. Chemical activity in your brain, the nerves or blood vessels surrounding your skull, or the muscles of your head and neck (or some combination of these factors) can play a role in primary headaches. Some people may also carry genes that make them more likely to develop such headaches.
Primary headaches :
- Tension headaches include pressure and a band-like tightness that begins in the back of the head and upper neck, and gradually encircles the head.
- Cluster headaches are headaches that occur in groups, or clusters, over a period of several weeks or months separated by headache-free periods of months or years.
- During the headache period, the cluster headache sufferer experiences several episodes of pain during the day, each of which lasts 30 to 90 minutes.
- These attacks, which often occur at the same time of day, include sharp, penetrating pain around or behind one eye, watering of the eye and a stuffy nose.
- Migraine headaches cause intense, throbbing pain, often on one side of the head. Nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light, sound and exertion often accompany migraines, which can last several hours or up to three days.
- Some migraine sufferers experience a visual disturbance called an aura prior to the onset of the migraine. Auras are flashing lights, wavy lines, blurry vision or blind spots.
Secondary headaches:
- Disease of blood vessels in the brain.
- Head injury.
- High blood pressure (hypertension).
- Infection.
- Medication overuse.
- Sinus congestion.
- Trauma.
- Tumor.