General Headache Facts

Headaches are described as a pain in the head, usually located above the eyes or ears, in the back of the head (an occipital headache), or in the area of the upper vertebrae. Primary headaches, not related to or caused by diseases, are known as migraine headaches, cluster headaches and tension headaches. Secondary headaches are linked to a correlated minor, serious or life-threatening disease.

Tension headaches are the most universal type of primary headache and are experienced by 90% of the adult population. Women are typically afflicted with tension headaches more often than men. People suffering from a tension headache often experience pressure or pain in the back of the head and upper neck, tightness around the head and intense pain above the eyebrows. This type of headache is generally not debilitating and affects both sides of the head or bilaterally. Tension headaches are headaches that are experienced intermittently by most people although some have daily or frequent occurrences of this type.

Migraine headaches affect some 28 million women, men and children in the United States (approximately 12% of the population). Migraines headaches are chronic and the affected person usually experiences intense pain throbbing or pounding in the area of the temple, pain in the forehead, around the eyes or the back of the head. Most of the time, this pain is unilateral and, typically, switch sides after each attack. If a person experiences extreme pain with migraine-like symptoms that always occurs on the same side of the head, this could be indicative of a secondary headache caused by something else, a brain tumor, for example. Migraines can be activated by performing a daily task like walking up a set of stairs. Migraines are typically accompanied by symptoms such as facial pallor, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, cold hands or feet and sensitivity to light and sound. A migraine attack typically lasts between 4 and 72 hours, with the afflicted person preferring to rest in a quiet, dark room.

Another type of primary headache is the cluster headache. A cluster headache is rare, only affecting 0.1% of the population. Men between the ages of 28-30 years primarily experience these headaches. Cluster headaches occur in groups often lasting weeks or months and separated by months or years of pain-free periods. When a series of cluster headaches affects an individual, the pain he experiences will typically appear once or twice daily for 30 minutes to one and a half hours. These attacks manifest around the same time each day, sometimes waking the sufferer from a deep sleep. The pain of a cluster headache is a unilateral, excruciating pain often described as a hot poker in one eye. The patient will often experience restlessness, banging his head against a wall or compelled to violent or dangerous actions.

Secondary headaches, the second type of general headache, are caused by an associated disease that is serious or life threatening such as strokes, meningitis, subarachnoid hemorrhages or brain tumors. Withdrawal from caffeine or discontinuation of painkillers is a less serious cause of secondary headaches.

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