Cluster Headaches!

Headache Relief.

Headaches

An Introduction To Cluster Headaches

Approximately ten percent of the population suffers from migraine headaches which can be exceedingly painful and very debilitating but a much smaller number of people (about one third of one percent of the population) suffer from what are called cluster headaches which can be one of the most painful conditions you will ever go through.

There are two main characteristics to cluster headaches. The first is that sufferers feel a sharp, hot and stabbing pain which is normally confined to the area behind just one eye or close to the temple. The second is that cluster headaches follow a timetable and tend to appear at the same time every day frequently for several weeks or months, prior to going away altogether for a while and then returning once more.

We don't know what cause cluster headaches although research is tending to suggest that they might be induced by an abnormal condition in the hypothalamus, which is the small gland that plays a key role in regulating the body's clock.

One additional important feature of cluster headaches is that they tend to favor men instead of women and are commonly seen in up to eight times as many men as women between the ages of twenty and fifty. This is in contrast to migraine headaches which are about three times more likely in women than they are in men.

Normal headache treatments such as aspirin, paracetamol and ibuprofen are very seldom effective in treating cluster headaches and one of the most effective treatments once a headache has began is to breathe pure oxygen for several minutes.

A different treatment choice is to use drugs which are typically prescribed for migraine headaches but which are delivered in a form which speeds up their effectiveness. In other words, rather than taking these drugs in normal pill form, they are often injected or given as a nasal spray.

Both of these treatments are however only good following the onset of a headache and, as yet, there is no good preventative treatment. Experiments are however being conducted with various classes of drugs including calcium channel blockers and it is hoped that it won't be too long before some form of preventative medication is available.

In some extreme cases of cluster headaches neurosurgery has even been tested to block certain nerves or to remove small portions of the brain. The results have however been varying and this is seen very much as a treatment of last resort.

In some extreme cases of cluster headaches neurosurgery has even been tested to block certain nerves or to remove small portions of the brain. The results have however been varying and this is seen very much as a treatment of last resort.