Headaches are the most common reason for neurology consultations

British Hospital Buenos Aires shares a series of tips and key messages as they tackle the issue Headachethe most common reason for a neurology consultation, It affects people of all ages.socioeconomic conditions, and geographic regions.

Headache is divided into Primary and Secondary: Primary headache is the most common and is so named because the headache is the only and main symptom of the disorder. At the same time, secondary pain occurs when there is a change that caused the pain in question (sinusitis, tumor, bleeding, infection, etc.).

“Among primary headaches, the most common are migraine and tension-type headaches. Although their course is benign, if not well controlled, they can lead to a significant deterioration in the patient’s quality of life, resulting in time spent at work or school loss, damage to social and family life”, explain Dr. Lourdes Molina, Neurologist at a British hospital.

“Migraine is a common and disabling type of headache. Migraine is typically characterized by unilateral localization, throbbing, moderate or severe intensity, worsening with daily physical activity, and associated with nausea and/or photophobia and Associated with misophonia. Molina elaborated and added Tension-type headaches are common, The lifetime prevalence in the general population ranges from 30% to 78%. “It is characterized by attacks that are usually bilateral, have mild to moderate compressive features, and last for minutes to days. This pain is not worsened by regular physical activity, nor is it associated with nausea, but may Photophobia or phonophobia can develop,” he said.

The expert emphasized that trigger The most well-known case of this is the “Stress, Anxiety and Depression, Use of Anovulatory Medications, Certain Foods, Environmental Factors, Sleep Disorders, and Certain Medications, such as Oral Contraceptives, in Migraine Patients”.

Recommended by Molina for medical consultation “When the headache is recent, if the patient notices a new pain added to a previous pain, if the frequency or intensity of the pain changes, if new symptoms appear, such as vision problems or decreased muscle strength, if the trigger is needed Taking more than four pain medications in one month to control these episodes“.

Alternatives to medication Strategy To prevent or reduce headaches, such as maintaining a healthy lifestyle with regular schedules and meals; engaging in daily aerobic exercise; combining stress management with meditation and cognitive behavioral therapy; avoiding prolonged fasting and certain foods (such as dairy, Triggers such as products containing preservatives and artificial sweeteners, some alcoholic beverages), these foods vary from patient to patient, so it is important to consider their association.

Finally, professionals warn that while analgesics are appropriate for acute treatment, ideally “They are used at the onset of pain and always as directed by a doctor”.

this is the key avoid secondary headaches, This occurs due to habitual acute drug abuse, when 15 or more tablets per month of a generic pain reliever (such as paracetamol, ibuprofen, naproxen, etc.) or 10 or more tablets per month of a specific pain reliever ( Such as ergotamine), this happens. Ingestion and triptans.

“When this occurs, the headache becomes chronic and may ‘transform’ the initial pain, accompanied by other symptoms such as depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance, etc., resulting in poor quality of life and high rates of absenteeism from work”experts commented and concluded: “Stopping the overdose of analgesics and making habit and lifestyle changes are the best treatment strategies.”

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