Signs of migraine
Migraine is characterized by the onset after the appearance of precursors - weakness, weakness, unpleasant odors or other sensations. This is the so-called “aura”. If the aura is followed by pain on the right side of the head, the doctor will first consider a diagnosis of migraine.
Migraine pain is characterized by paroxysmal, burning sensations: the patient experiences pressure on the right eye, photophobia occurs, and nausea appears. The pain is sharp, intensifies, and is localized on the right side of the head. Unfortunately, it is still unclear why migraines occur; it is only clear that the problem is neurological in nature. Usually doctors look at the whole picture and strive to eliminate possible causes: psycho-emotional stress, overexertion, trauma.
Sinusitis and other ENT inflammations
Chronic and acute ENT infections often lead to severe headaches. For example, the cause of pain in the head on the right can be sinusitis - inflammation of the mucous membranes of the paranasal sinuses. In addition to direct pain, symptoms of sinusitis include nasal discharge, fever; it usually appears from an untreated runny nose and develops into an unpleasant chronic disease. If your headache is combined with nasal discharge, contact an infectious disease specialist or therapist at your place of registration - he will tell you how to cope with the disease.
Causes of pain in the occipital region of the head. Self help
Often, we rarely run to the doctor if something doesn’t hurt us too much; we only decide to visit an aesculapian when it’s already too hot. When experiencing pain in any part of the body, we sometimes do not even suspect that the cause of pain in one place may be the ill health of a completely different organ. This is what we will talk about today.
The most common causes of neck pain
Spine.
The presence of diseases of the spine in the cervical region, such as spondylosis, osteochondrosis, neck dislocations, spondylitis, can cause pain in the back of the head. Head movements are accompanied by neck pain.
Mental stress.
Stress is the main cause of a nervous state, and, accordingly, occipital pain. People, especially women, over 25 years of age should beware of stress, as they are at risk.
Overstrain of a physical and mental nature.
Excessive stress on the cervical spine also often causes discomfort in the back of the head. However, overstrain can also be mental. Concentrating on something, staying in one position for a long time, or an uncomfortable position also has unpleasant consequences.
High blood pressure.
This is the case when you need to see a doctor as soon as possible. The first sign of this condition is constant headaches in the back of the head in the morning.
Poor blood circulation in the muscles.
Poor blood circulation in the neck muscles leads to the appearance of compactions in them, which is called myogelosis. The reasons for its appearance are:
- stress;
- drafts;
- staying in one position for a long time and, as a result, muscle stiffness;
- problems with posture.
In this case, occipital pain is not the only sign of the disease. Dizziness, pain in the shoulders, and difficulty moving also appear.
Problems with peripheral nerves.
Neuralgia is the most common cause of pain. If you have neuralgia, a person also experiences pain in the jaw, neck, back, and ear. It hurts the patient to even cough or sneeze. In order to avoid the development of hypertension, you need to consult a specialist in time.
Migraine.
Migraine occurs not only in the head, but also in the neck. The pain, in this case, affects not only the back of the head, but also the temples. There may also be pain in the eyes, dizziness, a feeling of a white veil before the eyes, and hearing loss may develop.
Poor blood circulation in the brain.
Due to disturbances in the circulatory system of the brain, its functioning deteriorates. In this case, a person may experience, in addition to pain in the back of the head, dizziness, a sensation of tinnitus, visual and hearing disturbances. In some cases, nausea, fainting, vomiting may occur, and coordination of movements may be impaired.
First aid
If right now you cannot visit a doctor, and the pain does not go away, then you need to know first-aid techniques in order to experience relief at least for a while.
- Massage. It is done on the neck, shoulders and back of the head. You can do it yourself, but it is not very convenient, so it is better to ask someone for help. The main thing is not to make sudden, strong movements, and when pressing on any areas, do not apply force. It is better to stretch it a little and stroke it with relaxing movements.
- Change your body position, stretch, do exercises and be sure to ventilate the room.
- It is allowed to take medications that relieve spasms. In some cases, medications are taken that reduce muscle tone. But you can do this only if you are sure that the cause of pain in the back of the head is precisely the tightened neck muscles.
When and which doctor should I contact?
Of course, it is undesirable to engage in self-diagnosis and self-medication, therefore, when the first signs of pain in the back of the head appear, it is better to consult a doctor in order to accurately determine their cause.
This problem is dealt with by specialists such as a traumatologist, a neurologist and a massage therapist.
First, visit a neurologist, and he will redirect you to the right specialist. Author: K.M.N., Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences M.A. Bobyr
Problems in the temporomandibular joint
The lower jaw is connected to the skull by a cartilaginous disc, which can become inflamed or “wear out” because it is a moving part. A problem with the temporomandibular joint is quite easy to recognize: in addition to acute pain localized on the right, there are sensations of “shooting” in the eye and ear, the face may become asymmetrical, a burning sensation in the mouth, dryness or increased salivation may appear. If you suspect this pathology, you should contact your dentist - he will prescribe a diet, medications and, if necessary, refer you to a surgeon. If the joint is completely destroyed, it is replaced with an implant.
Treatment
Conservative therapy
The treatment plan is drawn up taking into account the nature of the disease. The following medications and non-drug methods are used:
- Migraine.
To eliminate paroxysms, non-narcotic analgesics are prescribed. For persistent attacks, blockades are performed. For intense excruciating pain and migraine status, triptans are used in tablets, rectal suppositories, and solutions for parenteral administration. The last two options allow you to solve the problem of taking the drug for persistent vomiting. - Paroxysmal hemicrania.
NSAIDs, glucocorticosteroids, and calcium channel blockers are effective. Depending on the severity of the pathology, medications are taken in short courses or continuously. - Cluster headache.
Painful attacks are eliminated with the help of triptans and applications of local anesthetics to the nasal mucosa. The effectiveness of inhalation of 100% oxygen is noted. Preventive measures in the interictal period are carried out using calcium channel blockers, hormonal, and antiepileptic medications. - Hypnic headache.
The basis of treatment is hypnotics, lithium preparations, and atypical benzodiazepines. Some researchers have reported the effectiveness of steroids and NSAIDs. Before going to bed, patients are advised to take caffeine-containing and melatonin-containing medications. - Vertebrobasilar insufficiency.
Antiplatelet agents, anticoagulants, neuroprotectors, antihypertensive, vascular drugs, exercise therapy, massage, manual therapy, hyperbaric oxygenation, magnetic therapy, laser therapy are recommended. - Tumors.
To reduce the severity of symptoms, non-narcotic and narcotic analgesics, antiemetics, glucocorticoids, and psychotropic drugs are used. Radiation and chemotherapy are carried out as part of palliative therapy or are part of complex treatment in the pre- and postoperative period. - Spinal pathologies.
Pain is eliminated with the help of oral and parenteral forms of NSAIDs, muscle relaxants, and local administration of glucocorticosteroids. They use B vitamins, neurometabolites, phonophoresis, UHF, electrophoresis, and magnetic therapy. - ENT diseases.
Treatment regimens include antibacterial, vasoconstrictor, antihistamines, physiotherapy, paracentesis of the tympanic membrane, and puncture of the paranasal sinuses.
Surgery
Treatment of primary cephalgia is only conservative. For other pathologies, the following may be indicated:
- Vertebrobasilar insufficiency
: reconstructive surgery to restore blood flow. - Brain neoplasia
: removal of cerebral tumors using traditional and minimally invasive surgical techniques. - Spinal diseases
: low-traumatic (endoscopic microdiscectomy, puncture laser vaporization) and traditional (discectomy) interventions for hernias, sometimes in combination with fixation operations. - Pathologies of ENT organs
: sanitizing surgery, mastoidotomy, frontotomy, maxillary sinusotomy, micromaxillary sinusotomy.
Neuralgia pain
Neuralgia pain is provoked by cold water, air, and sudden movements. For example, when washing with cold water, a sharp pain in the head on the right may occur, which undoubtedly indicates neuralgia.
Pressing, burning, bursting and dull pain in the head on the right appears with the same migraine. Often it can spread to other areas of the head and spread to the entire skull. There are other, more rare causes of headaches on the right.
In order to help a patient with such pain, it is undoubtedly necessary to establish an accurate diagnosis. Migraine can be successfully treated with both medications and osteopathic craniosacral techniques. Neuralgia is quite difficult to treat; medications, as a rule, do not help. But, fortunately, many types of neuralgia can be corrected using osteopathic techniques.
So, if pain in the head on the right is caused by a pinched nerve in the exit channel, then alignment and balancing of the skull bones can completely relieve the patient of this problem. In our center, Dr. Malyutin A.G. can see you with this problem. and others. Make an appointment!
Diagnostic methods
It is important to determine why your head hurts on one side. For this, the overall picture and clinical signs may not be enough. The doctor will prescribe additional examinations to assess the condition of the spine and soft tissues, nerves and blood vessels:
- general and biochemical blood tests;
- MRI of the cervical spine, in some cases radiography is sufficient;
- Dopplerography of the vessels of the neck and head - ultrasound diagnostics using a contrast agent;
- otolaryngological examinations - include visualization of the paranasal sinuses, diagnosis of inflammatory diseases of the ear.
At the Clinical Brain Institute, you can undergo a full examination and determine the exact cause of your headache. Without a series of tests, it is possible to carry out exclusively symptomatic treatment, which does not affect the cause of the pain, but only eliminates its symptoms.
