Understanding Persistent Headaches: Causes and Indicators

Chronic headaches are defined as headaches that last over fifteen days each month and persist for longer than three months. They may occur continuously or intermittently and can significantly impact daily life. Recognizing the underlying causes is essential to managing these headaches effectively.

There are four main categories of persistent headaches:

• Migraine
• Tension-type headaches
• Hemicrania Continua
• New Daily Persistent Headache (NDPH)

Common causes:

• Migraines: These are recurrent episodes where headaches last more than eight days a month for at least three months. Migraines often affect one or both sides of the head and can cause moderate to severe pain, light and sound sensitivity, and nausea. Triggers include physical activity and medication overuse leading to rebound headaches.

Tension-type headaches: Commonly called stress headaches, they cause a feeling of tightness around the head. Factors such as stress, sinus infections, fatigue, poor posture, screen overuse, cold or flu can trigger these headaches.

Rare causes:

• New Daily Persistent Headache: Occurs suddenly in individuals with no prior history of headaches. It combines symptoms of migraines and tension headaches but is not triggered by physical activity.
• Hemicrania Continua: A primary headache disorder causing continuous pain on one side of the head, often with additional symptoms like watery eyes, nasal congestion, droopy eyelid, and restlessness.

Less common causes include traumatic injuries, brain tumors, infections, vascular issues, and abnormal intracranial pressure. If these symptoms resonate with you, seek medical advice promptly, especially if relying on over-the-counter painkillers frequently for relief. Accurate diagnosis facilitates effective treatment and management of persistent headaches.