Headaches

Question 1

What are primary and secondary headaches?

Answer 1

Primary- not caused by something else
Secondary- caused by something else

Question 2

What are the symptoms of migraines?

Answer 2

Aura
unilateral pain
Nausea
Vomiting
focal symptoms
photophobia
lasts for long periods of time, sometimes more than a day

Question 3

What are the phases of auras?

Answer 3

prodromal- before a migraine patient starts to feel change in mood, food cravings, yawning
Aura-visual and sensory disturbance
Headache
Resolution- rest and sleep
Recovery-feeling hungover, food intolerance

Question 4

What are the treatments for headaches? What must women that suffer migraines and on the pill be weary of?

Answer 4

Apirin/Ibuprofen
NSAIDS
Nap
Change lifestyle- avoid triggers
Beta Blockers- apart from if you have asthma
oral contraceptive pill (oestrogen) can trigger migraines

Question 5

What are the symptoms of a tension type headache and how do you treat it?

Answer 5

Bilateral pain
tight neck muscles
subsides within a couple of hours
no added clinical features

NSAIDS
Paracetamol

Question 6

What are the symptoms of cluster headaches and how do you treat them?

Answer 6

Unilateral unbearable pain
short acting about 15 mins
nasal congestion
eyelid oedema
conjunctival redness
agitation

triptan
oxygen
NO NSAIDS
prednisolone (corticosteroids)

Question 7

what are the red flags of a headache?

Answer 7

AGE > 50yrs new or different headache
ONSET- sudden abrupt
SYSTEMIC SYMPTOMS- fever, neck stiffness, rash, weight loss
NEUROLOGICAL SIGNS (Horners syndrome)- confusion, swollen optic disc