What diseases can a headache be a symptom of?

Headache

Encephalitis

Tick-borne encephalitis

Polio

Hypercholesterolemia

22278 31 July

IMPORTANT!

The information in this section cannot be used for self-diagnosis and self-treatment.
In case of pain or other exacerbation of the disease, diagnostic tests should be prescribed only by the attending physician. To make a diagnosis and properly prescribe treatment, you should contact your doctor. Headache - causes, what diseases it occurs with, diagnosis and treatment methods. The basis of headaches is irritation of pain receptors located in:

• dura mater and cerebral vessels;
• periosteum of the skull, vessels of the soft tissues of the head, muscles.

The brain tissue itself does not contain pain receptors.
Types of headaches (cephalgia)

Headaches are divided into primary and secondary. A headache is considered primary if it is the main manifestation of a brain disease, such as in migraines and tension headaches.

Secondary headache is a symptom of other disorders, for example, head trauma, chronic cerebral ischemia, viral diseases, diseases of the cervical spine, etc.

Let's look at the four most common types of headaches.
Possible causes
Tension headache

Tension headache is the most common form of primary headache. Psycho-emotional stress, depression, anxiety and various phobias, overstrain of the muscles of the shoulder girdle - these are the main causes of tension headaches. Migraine headache

Migraines occur in women about three times more often than in men, and about 60-70% of all migraine cases in women are so-called menstrual migraines. However, the causes and mechanism of development of migraine attacks are not completely clear. At any age, in both men and women, migraine attacks can be provoked by emotional and physical overload, eating disorders, drinking alcohol, changes in weather conditions, sharp noise, strong odors, etc. Headache with colds

Headaches from colds are caused by hyperthermia and the damaging effects of microorganism toxins on brain cells. Headache in chronic cerebral ischemia

The cause of this pain, which is the most common secondary headache in elderly patients, is cerebral vascular pathology, in which blood circulation is disrupted and blood supply to brain tissue deteriorates.

The result is progressive brain dysfunction.
What diseases cause
tension headaches?

Tension headaches are caused by irritation of structures in the central nervous system (CNS) called the nociceptive system. Myogenic, stress, and psychogenic headaches are tension headaches.

Most often, tension headaches occur at a young and working age.

In cases of tension headaches, a person experiences bilateral, usually not strong, pressing and squeezing, monotonous and dull headaches. Attacks of such pain are accompanied by fatigue, nervousness, impaired appetite and sleep, and decreased performance. The duration of the attack is from 30 minutes to several days.

Migraine headache

Indicates only one disease - migraine, since attacks of such cephalgia have a peculiar character. Migraine pain is paroxysmal, throbbing, of moderate or severe intensity. It covers half of the head.

The pain may intensify with physical activity, tilting the head, and is often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

Bright light, sharp sound, strong smell increase the pain. A migraine attack may be preceded by an aura, a collection of visual, auditory, olfactory or other neurological symptoms that lasts up to one hour.

Headache due to colds

Occurs in most acute and chronic diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract caused by bacteria or viruses. In some cases, the intensity of such cephalgia correlates with the severity of fever, severity of cough, sore throat and other symptoms. The pain most often spreads throughout the head. Headache in chronic cerebral ischemia

The concept of chronic cerebral ischemia includes: discirculatory or vascular encephalopathy (slowly progressive cerebrovascular accident), cerebrovascular insufficiency (pathology of cerebral vessels), vascular dementia (a disorder that causes organic damage to the brain). In the clinical picture of chronic cerebral ischemia, dizziness, decreased cognitive function, emotional lability (unstable mood), motor-coordination disorders, and perception disorders (tinnitus, “floaters” before the eyes) become indispensable companions of headaches. Headaches are usually not severe, spread over the entire head, and last for a long time. Diagnostics and examinations

Tension headache and migraine headache, headache with colds

The diagnosis is made by a neurologist based on anamnesis and assessment of the patient’s complaints. Headache in chronic cerebral ischemia

Radiation examination is key for chronic cerebral ischemia (ultrasound Dopplerography of cerebral vessels)

Causes of headaches

If you have a headache in your temples, this may indicate the presence of:

• high blood pressure (hypertension);
• low blood pressure (hypotension);
• food or chemical poisoning;
• infectious disease.

If your head hurts from behind, i.e. in the back of the head, this indicates:

• cervical osteochondrosis;
• high blood pressure.

If the frontal part of the head hurts, then most likely the patient has the following ailments:

• frontal sinusitis;
• meningitis;
• pneumonia;
• pinched occipital nerve;
• increased intracranial pressure.

If a headache begins to ache in the eye area, the specialist may suggest the following reasons for the patient:

• migraine;
• glaucoma;
• autonomic disorder;
• overstrain of the optic nerve.

When should you call an ambulance?

If a patient has a headache of moderate or severe intensity, according to medical professionals, it cannot be tolerated and it is better to take action as soon as possible. So, in particular, there are several signals with which you can determine in which cases you should act immediately and call an ambulance.

Doctors - specialists of JSC "Medicine" (clinic of Academician Roitberg) spoke about them:

• severe headache on the left, right, center, front or back and resembles blows - this is one of the symptoms of subarachnoid hemorrhage;
• The headache is tolerable, getting worse when lying down and going away on its own within 20-30 minutes when standing. This symptom can be caused by extremely dangerous illnesses: a brain tumor, serious consequences of a traumatic brain injury, problems with the cerebrospinal fluid;
• headache and dizziness are accompanied by loss of consciousness or unusual behavior of a person, as well as a deterioration in his motor activity (inability to get up, stand or walk independently). The cause may be a life-threatening disease that requires urgent treatment in a hospital;
• part of the head hurts or all of it, along with a sharply increased or increasing body temperature, can also be combined with discomfort in the muscles and photophobia. These are characteristic symptoms of meningitis, the positive outcome of treatment of which comes within hours.

On the basis of JSC "Medicine" (clinic of Academician Roitberg) there is a 24-hour emergency department, so if you recognize one of the symptoms listed above, do not hesitate, call specialists immediately. A serious illness that has been promptly and correctly diagnosed is much easier and faster to cure than to deal with the severe consequences of a neglected condition.

Symptom treatment

If you have a headache in the temples, back of the head, crown or forehead, the cause should be treated first, otherwise the discomfort will recur regularly. Therefore, if you do not need to call an ambulance, you need to visit the Pain Treatment Center at JSC Medicine (clinic of Academician Roitberg).

JSC “Medicine” (clinic of Academician Roitberg) employs the best specialists of the capital and region. The center has a convenient location: it is located in the center of Moscow, near the Mayakovskaya, Belorusskaya, Chekhovskaya, Novoslobodskaya, Tverskaya metro stations.

However, its main advantage over other clinics is the wide range of medical services provided at a high level for the diagnosis and treatment of headaches.

To understand what to do if you have a headache, you need to identify the cause. JSC "Medicine" (academician Roitberg's clinic) has the most modern equipment that allows for the most accurate diagnosis. These include methods such as:

• MRI;
• CT;
• PET/CT;
• ultrasound diagnostics;
• ECG;
• dopplerography;
• bone densitometry;
• echocephalography;
• 24-hour blood pressure test;
• multislice computed tomography.

There is also a large-scale clinical diagnostic laboratory, which allows performing analyzes as quickly as possible and with high accuracy.

Depending on the cause of the symptom, the therapist can begin treatment on his own or refer the patient to a more specialized specialist. In most cases, the following methods are used:

• drug therapy;
• psychotherapy;
• acupuncture;
• physiotherapeutic methods.

In more serious situations, surgery may be used after a thorough examination.

Popular questions and answers

We asked neurologists to answer questions related to headaches in the back of the head.

When can a headache in the back of your head be dangerous?

“Such symptoms,” says neurologist Olga Zincheva, “can include:

• concomitant increase in body temperature;
• weakness, awkwardness;
• numbness and tingling in the limbs or one limb;
• prolonged increase in pressure, difficult to reduce;
• severe headaches;
• headaches are accompanied by nausea and vomiting;
• double vision, impaired consciousness.

When to see a doctor for a headache in the back of the head?

“There are signs,” explains Olga Zincheva, “that require medical attention:

• you have a headache for the first time for no apparent reason;
• pain lasts several days;
• there are concomitant diseases.

“You need to go to the hospital immediately,” adds colleague Elena Gaivoronskaya, “if the headache occurs suddenly, it is very intense, there was no such pain before, or if the pain is accompanied by weakness in the limbs on one side of the body, a distortion of the face, speech disorder, or lack of coordination. If you have other alarming symptoms, you should consult a doctor as planned. You should also see a neurologist if you are taking too many pain medications or if your headaches are affecting your quality of life.

Diagnostics

Neurologists at the Yusupov Hospital conduct a comprehensive examination of patients. It allows you to determine the exact cause of the headache. Patients are prescribed the following studies:

• Computer and magnetic resonance imaging of the brain;
• Ultrasound Doppler examination of the vessels of the head and neck;
• Electroencephalography;
• Echoencephalography;
• REO-encephalography.

The doctor recommends that the patient keep a headache diary in which he needs to record the following information:

• When did the pain occur?
• What is its intensity;
• How long did the attack last?
• Has your blood pressure risen?

The patient brings the diary to an appointment with a neurologist. The doctor analyzes the information provided by the patient, the results of the studies performed and develops tactics for managing the patient.

How to cure a headache with one injection?

The Center for the Study of Pain of JSC "Medicine" (clinic of Academician Roitberg) uses targeted (targeted) treatment of migraines with the monoclonal antibody drug "Irinex", which is administered subcutaneously by injection. This method has already helped thousands of patients in the USA and Europe, and has now become available in Russia.

Specialists at the Pain Research Center approach migraine treatment in a comprehensive manner. This approach allows us to minimize the impact of the disease on the body and overall health. The combination of various methods of rehabilitation and therapy allows you to achieve excellent results in a short time and a significant improvement in the quality of life.