| Headache Treatment Perth |
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Headache is defined as pain in the head or upper neck. It is one of the most common locations of pain in the body and has many causes.
Tension headaches are the most common type of primary headache; as many as 90% of adults have had or will have tension headaches. Tension headaches are more common among women than men While tension headaches are the most frequently occurring type of headache, their cause is not known. The most likely cause is contraction of the muscles that cover the skull. When the muscles covering the skull are stressed, they may spasm and cause pain. Common sites include the base of the skull where the trapezius muscles of the neck inserts, the temple where muscles that assist the jaw to move are located, and the forehead.
There is little research to confirm the exact cause of tension headaches. Tension headaches occur because of physical or emotional stress placed on the body. Physical stress that may cause tension headaches include difficult and prolonged manual labor, or sitting at a desk or computer for long periods of time Emotional stress may also cause tension headaches by causing the muscles surrounding the skull to contract. |
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| The symptoms of tension headache are: |
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A pain that begins in the back of the head and upper neck as a band-like tightness or pressure. |
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Described as a band of pressure encircling the head with the most intense pain over the eyebrows. |
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The pain is usually mild (not disabling) and bilateral (affecting both sides of the head). |
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Not associated with an aura (see below) and are not associated with nausea, vomiting, or sensitivity to light and sound. |
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Usually occur sporadically (infrequently and without a pattern) but can occur frequently and even daily in some people. |
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Most people are able to function despite their tension headaches |
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Migraine headaches are the second most common type of primary headache. An estimated 28 million people in the United States (about 12% of the population) will experience migraine headaches. Migraine headaches affect children as well as adults. Before puberty, boys and girls are affected equally by migraine headaches, but after puberty, more women than men are affected. An estimated 6% of men and up to 18% of women will experience a migraine headache.
Migraine is a neurological syndrome characterized by altered bodily perceptions, severe headaches, and nausea. Physiologically, the migraine headache is a neurological condition more common to women than to men. The word migraine was borrowed from Old French migraigne (originally as "megrim", but respelled in 1777 on a contemporary French model). The French term derived from a vulgar pronunciation of the Late Latin word hemicrania, itself based on Greek hemikrania, from Greek roots for "half" and "skull".[1]
The typical migraine headache is unilateral and pulsating, lasting from 4 to 72 hours symptoms include nausea, vomiting, photophobia (increased sensitivity to light), and phonophobia (increased sensitivity to sound); approximately one-third of people who suffer migraine headache perceive an aura ,unusual visual, olfactory, or other sensory experiences that are a sign that the migraine will soon occur.
Initial treatment is with analgesics for the headache, an antiemetic for the nausea, and the avoidance of triggering conditions. The cause of migraine headache is idiopathic; the accepted theory is a disorder of the serotonergic control system, as PET scan has demonstrated the aura coincides with diffusion of cortical depression consequent to increased blood flow (up to 300% greater than baseline).
There are migraine headache variants, some originate in the brainstem (featuring intercellular transport dysfunction of calcium and potassium ions) and some are genetically disposed. Studies of twins indicate a 60 to 65 percent genetic influence upon their propensity to develop migraine headache. Moreover, fluctuating hormone levels indicate a migraine relation: 75 percent of adult patients are women, although migraine affects approximately equal numbers of prepubescent boys and girls; propensity to migraine headache is known to disappear during pregnancy, although in some women migraines may become more frequent during pregnancy.
Cluster headaches are a rare type of primary headache, affecting 0.1% of the population. An estimated 85% of cluster headache sufferers are men. The average age of cluster headache sufferers is 28-30 years of age, although headaches may begin in childhood.
The cause of cluster headaches is uncertain. It may be that certain parts of the brain begin to malfunction for an unknown reason. The hypothalamus, an area located at the base of the brain is responsible for the body's biologic clock and may be the part of the brain that is the source for the headaches. When brain scans are performed on patients who are in the midst of a cluster headache, there is abnormal activity in the hypothalamus. |
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| Cluster headaches also: |
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tend to run in families and this suggests that there may be a genetic role. |
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may be triggered by changes in sleep patterns. |
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may be triggered by medications (for example, nitroglycerin, used for heart disease). |
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| If the patient is in a susceptible period for cluster headache, cigarette smoking, alcohol, and some foods (for example, chocolate) can precipitate the headache. |
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| What are the symptoms of cluster headaches? |
| Cluster headaches are headaches that come in groups (clusters) lasting weeks or months, separated by pain-free periods of months or years. |
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During the period in which the cluster headaches occur, pain typically occurs once or twice daily, but some patients may experience pain more than twice daily. |
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Each episode of pain lasts from 30 minutes to an hour and a half. |
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Attacks tend to occur at about the same time every day and often awaken the patient at night from a sound sleep. |
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The pain typically is excruciating and located around or behind one eye. |
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Some patients describe the pain as feeling like a hot poker in the eye. The affected eye may become red, inflamed, and watery. |
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The nose on the affected side may become congested and runny. |
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Unlike patients with migraine headaches, patients with cluster headaches tend to be restless. They often pace the floor, bang their heads against a wall, and can be driven to desperate measures. Cluster headaches are much more common in males than females.
The good news is that with treatment most people become headache free.
So for more information on headaches please call CBD Wellness Centre on 94868653. |
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