Cluster Headache Symptoms

The cluster headache is a malady that affects just 69 out of 100,000 people in the population-much fewer than those who suffer from migraines, sinus headaches, or one of the many other types of headaches. This is probably why it was not really recognized by the medical community until the last 150 years or so and is still largely misunderstood.

It's said that migraines are very painful but a cluster headaches can top this. Cluster headaches are also sometimes described as "suicide headaches" because of their sudden and extremely painful attacks which can last anywhere between five minutes and three hours.

Cluster headache attacks

Cluster headaches were called such because the headache episodes occur frequently and at the same time within periods. For example, a person may experience terrible headache every 2 p.m. of the day for the whole summer. After summer, that person will not feel the headache anymore, until the following summer, when the clusters of headaches start to reappear.

Often, the area affected by the excruciating headache pain is also remain on that particular and same area of the head. It is rare that the center of the pain on cluster headaches transfer to another site or region of the head.

Symptoms of cluster headaches

Aside from those mentioned above, there are also other symptoms that can be indicative of the presence of cluster headache in a person.

A person suffering from the periodic disease experience swelling in the eye area, drooping of the eyelids and runny aor stuffy nostrils. The patient also exhibit flushed face and his eye pupils are reduced in size.

Restlessness is first and foremost noticeable at the onset of the cluster attacks. Usually, patients experience difficulty in sleeping and are easily annoyed. Thus, these people tend to prefer being alone often.

Cluster Headache Treatment

Cluster headaches are treatable, but not exactly curable. There are cases when a patient suddenly stops having attacks. On the contrary, there are cases when the attacks get more severe and more often.

Unfortunately there is not many options when it comes to cluster headache treatment. One of the best to date is know as “abortive treatment” and is quite simple. During the onset of a cluster headache the most common type of abortive treatment is the inhalation of pure oxygen.

This technique as been known to abort cluster headache attacks in as little as 5 minutes; however the downside is that you need to have oxygen ready at any time just in case you would have another attack.