There are many types of headaches, but all fit into three basic categories. Most headaches that people get can fall into the category primary headache. Primary headaches afflict millions every day, and are not a serious or life threatening issue. Primary headaches can occasionally become very painful, or can become a chronic problem. Although this isn’t life threatening, it can be a serious impediment to quality of life. Fixing these kinds of primary headaches can be very important to the daily life and functioning of a patient. Correcting issues regarding primary headaches is usually possible with just over the counter medication.
Cluster headaches are a far more serious kind of headache that can seriously debilitate a patient if not treated. Although not life threatening in itself, the associated is very serious and often debilitating. Cluster headaches are known as such because of the groupings they occur in, and can be very hard to predict. This results in treatment that is difficult to apply, resulting in attacks that usually cannot be avoided. A cluster headache usually prevents any daily function. Pain typically focuses behind one or both eyes. Patients may undergo a pain crisis when presented with a cluster headache. Treatment of this pain is very important and should be done as soon as possible. Over the counter medications are typically inadequate in these situations.
One of the most uncommon types of headaches are secondary type. The secondary type of headache is a result of another problem the person might have. Secondary headache problems indicate an issure in the brain that could possibly be life threatening. On of the most extreme examples of this would be a brain tumor, although there are many other causes such as internal bleeding and insufficient blood flow. In any case a doctor should be counsulted.
The vast majority of headaches fall into the primary categorization. What are the headache causes? As many as 90% of primary headaches are caused by so called “tension” headaches. A tension headache occurs when the muscles over the skull contract tightly, putting a painful amount of pressure on the head. The pain usually centers around the temples. Relief can usually be found with a variety of over the counter medications.
