2023-09-19 21:25:00
The most difficult pain is headache. She visits us most often; she is especially difficult to analyze, especially if we are talking about a child. How to solve the problem and increase the success of the examination? These questions are among hundreds of problems that mother of three children and doctor Olga Cologne examines in her book “500 answers from a neurologist”. It is published by AST publishing house this fall, and we are publishing an analysis now.
According to various sources, there are from 150 to 300 causes of headaches. And each cause has its own treatment features. Therefore, it is very important to establish the correct diagnosis. But this is definitely not vegetative-vascular or neurocirculatory dystonia, not osteochondrosis, not vertebral artery syndrome – since there are no such diagnoses in the International Classification of Headaches.
Headaches are primary and secondary. Primary are independent neurological diseases:
Tension headache Migraine Cluster headache and other trigeminal autonomic cephalgia Other primary headaches
Secondary headaches occur against the background of some other disease:
systemic infection; diseases of the eyes, ENT organs; head or neck injuries; vascular lesions of the head or neck; mental disorder; diseases of homeostasis (blood coagulation system); pathologies of the skull, neck, eyes, ears, nasal cavity, sinuses, teeth, oral cavity or other facial or cervical structures.
Or reception:
medicines; alcohol.
Wherein:
the onset of headache coincides with the onset of the causative disease; headache intensifies with worsening of the disease and weakens with improvement; The headache has characteristics typical of the underlying disease.
And in order to make a correct diagnosis, you need to come to the doctor with a clear description of your pain:
Nature of pain: pressing/pulsating/stabbing. Localization: all over the head/temples/frontal region/occipital region. Headache intensity. Optimally, evaluate on a 10-point scale of the visual analogue pain rating scale (VAS). Associated symptoms: nausea, vomiting, double vision, dizziness. Duration. Frequency – how many times a week/month. Possible provoking factor: stress / disruption of the daily routine / consumption of any food or drink.
In order to correctly determine the frequency, it is useful to keep a diary of headaches, in which you note the time of onset, duration, painkillers taken and their effectiveness.
It is possible to use the mobile applications “Headache Diary” or Migrebot.
To my great regret, often the first appointment for a child’s headache is less productive than it could be. The mother reports that her son or daughter has a headache, but, of course, cannot fully describe it. I turn to the child – he gets lost, is embarrassed to say, or an argument starts.
“I have pain in the frontal region,” says the young patient.
“No, you showed me the whiskey,” mom intervenes.
Asking about the duration and frequency of pain, as a rule, is simply useless. As a result, due to a lack of data, I cannot judge whether the child is eligible for preventive therapy. And they leave me with recommendations on the regimen, actions for headaches and keeping a diary.
A book “500 answers from a neurologist” is published as part of the AST publishing house series “About your child: question and answer.” The authors of the books are experienced doctors, psychologists, teachers by vocation, with an active life position and great love for children. The series of books “About your child: question and answer” are answers to the most pressing questions of parents about the health, upbringing and development of children.
Cover illustration: BRO.vector / Shutterstock / Fotodom. archyde news. Advertiser: AST Publishing House LLC, LjN8KPvsZ
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