Cary Headahce
Headaches Treatment
Migraine Headache Log
Migraine Causes And Treatment
Early Morning Heaadche
Causes O Fconstant Headache
Headache Quiz
Headaches Illniois
Tension Headache Symptoms

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Those who've experienced TMJ disorder (a condition resulting from tension of the temporomandibular joint, in which the jaw tightens against the skull) are familiar with this last. For the majority, treatment with triptans and other drugs continues to be the most common route. Tension-type headaches or cluster headaches are the result.

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Since it works by changing blood composition, as does aspirin, anyone who has had heart surgery should avoid it. Cluster headaches, which attack only about a third of one percent of the population, are even more intense than migraines. Sit up straight, but not so straight as to be over-tense. As with many conditions, the best cure is prevention. There is some research that claims that tension headaches are a milder version of a migraine. But only for a certain length of time.

Headaches - Seeking Medical Advice for Headaches


While it may seem fairly easy to diagnose a headache correctly identifying them is trickier than you might think. In many instances patients may think they have sinusitis but actually have a mild migraine. One respected study reports that 97 percent of people wrongly self-diagnosed themselves.

But you can improve the odds of getting a correct diagnosis from your physician by giving him or her all the assistance you can.

Headache Diary

First and foremost, for those who have frequent headaches, keeping a diary is a must. The diary should note when it began and ended, as accurately as possible. Note the location and type of pain as well as you can. Though pain is subjective, it's helpful to make notes about the severity, too.

Knowing the degree, type and frequency of a headache is the first step to differentiating between, say, a migraine and a cluster headache, or an ordinary tension headache. Migraines produce a pulsating pain that strikes at odd moments, while cluster headaches tend to occur around the same time every day for weeks.

Make careful notes about diet, exercise and life-factors, too.

Changes in diet can lead to certain headaches. Chocolate, red wine, cheese and other foods and drinks are often triggers for those who are a sensitive. Excess exercise can often produce headaches, though how much is excessive will, of course, vary from person to person. Life-factors, such as moving to a new town, work or relationship stress and others can produce headaches.

When those factors lead to an ordinary tension headache that responds to aspirin or acetaminophen, then doesn't reoccur, there's little to do. But when the condition becomes more intense or long-lived, that diary is essential to providing physicians with needed clues for proper diagnosis.

Advanced Tools

There are literally hundreds of underlying medical conditions that can produce so-called 'secondary headaches'. That is a headache in which the head pain and its cause is not the primary factor. In 'primary headaches' the head pain is itself the medical condition.

No one, not even physicians, can always detect correctly at first which of these possible conditions is responsible. But they have the tools that can narrow them down. CT scans and MRI are two of the most common.

CT (Computer Tomography) scans use a series of directed x-rays that are combined by the computer to provide a 3-D 'picture' of the brain. MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) does not use x-rays, but the electromagnetic activity of the brain itself, to map structures and conditions within the skull.

Both those have become outstanding diagnostic tools to determine the type of headache and any possible underlying neurological condition that might be producing it. In rare (but often obvious, once the tests are complete), cases a brain tumor or cancer is the underlying cause of headache.

There are two basic ways of obtaining information to base a diagnosis on. The first information to consider is the patient's self-evaluation. The other important step in having a diagnosis is the doctor's examine. Combining the patient and physician's evaluations leads to a more accurate diagnosis.