Headache – Causes and Symptoms

HeadacheIf you're searching for relief from headache pain, you're not alone. More than 40 million Americans have chronic headaches and often the pain is severe or dis­abling. Headache sufferers account for over 8 million vis­its a year to doctors' offices. Headaches can be caused by too much sleep, not eat­ing regular meals, stress, poor posture, sinusitis, ear infection, head injury, toothache, and food allergies.

 Rare causes of headache include high blood pressure; brain tumor; aneurysm, which is a swelling in part of a blood vessel; and inflammation of the arteries of the brain and scalp.

Although nine out of 10 headaches are not life-threat­ening, some headaches require medical attention.

It’s time to see your doctor if you have a headache and:

  1. Drowsiness
  2. Confusion
  3. Paralysis on one side of your body

If these symptoms follow a head injury, see your doctor immediately. You may have a hemorrhage, or bleeding, in your brain.

  1. Nausea or vomiting
  2. Loss of vision or visual disturbances
  3. Speech problems
  4. Seizures

These symptoms could mean that you have a brain tumor.

  1. Breathing difficulty
  2. Nausea or vomiting
  3. Weakness Cough
  4. Disturbed vision
  5. Bleeding in the retinas of your eyes

If you travel to a high altitude, watch out for these symptoms. They may mean you have altitude sick­ness, which can be very serious. If you are above 10,000 feet and begin to experience a severe headache, confusion or hallucinations, and unsteadiness on your feet, your brain could be starting to swell. This is a medical emergency, so get help immediately.

  1. Dizziness
  2. Confusion
  3. Blurred vision
  4. Vomiting

If you have recently lost consciousness following a head injury and are experiencing the above symp­toms in addition to your headache, you may have a concussion.

Fever

  1. Neck stiffness
  2. Nausea and vomiting
  3. Sensitivity to light

If you have these symptoms, you may have menin­gitis, which is an infection of the spinal fluid and the tissues around the brain and spinal cord.

  1. Blurred vision
  2. Enlarged pupil
  3. Teary eye

If your headache pain is dull and located around your eye, you may have glaucoma.

  1. Stuffy nose
  2. Fever
  3. Facial pressure

If you have these symptoms, you may have sinusi­tis, which is an inflammation of the sinus areas around your eyes and nose.

  1. Throbbing pain, usually on one side of the head
  2. Nausea or vomiting
  3. Sensitivity to light
  4. Visual disturbances

These symptoms may mean that you have a migraine.