Understanding the Dangers of Neglected Headaches

Hyderabad neurologist Sudhir Kumar emphasizes the potential severity of untreated headaches, warning of disability and mortality.

Sudhir Kumar, a neurologist based in Hyderabad, underscores the urgent need to promptly recognize and treat headaches, cautioning that failure to do so can lead to severe consequences such as disability and even death ().

The doctor, from Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad, in a post on X.com, said that headaches are usually not serious, and commonly are migraine and tension-type headaches. These present no serious complications and are easily and often effectively treatable.

Drug Induced Headache
Medication-induced headache (MIH) or a medication-overuse headache (MOH) is a condition where a patient suffers daily chronic headaches due to over-use of some medications, mainly painkillers.

‘Did You Know? While most headaches are benign, certain types of headaches can indicate a medical emergency, such as thunderclap headaches, that reach maximum intensity within 60 seconds, often signaling potentially life-threatening conditions. #headache #disability #death ’

"However, not all causes of headaches are benign. Some of the conditions that cause headaches are serious and may result in disability and even death if not promptly recognized and treated on time," said Sudhir.

The doctor noted that the most severe headache is due to "subarachnoid hemorrhage", which causes life-threatening bleeding in the brain. This severe headache recently affected motivational speaker Jaggi Vasudev, who suffered from it for several weeks.

Neurologist Sudhir Kumar on Headache Management

He, later, underwent emergency surgery to relieve the bleeding in the skull. "Headache that often wakes up a person from sleep, or is worse in mornings on waking up, or that results in vomiting, double vision, etc, could be suggestive of brain tumor," said Sudhir.

He added that headaches coming along with weakness of the arm or leg could indicate a risk of "stroke".

Hangover Remedies: Helpful Tips to Relieve Nasty Headache
Holiday times are cool - night outs, parties, friends and - er - carousing! Then, comes that nasty hangover. Here are top tips to ease a nasty headache, pain and tension.

Further, the expert said that headache linked with fever, and reduced alertness "could be meningitis (brain fever)", and that which comes along with fever and seizures (fits) is "suggestive of encephalitis (brain fever)".

"New-onset headache in a person aged above 50; headache lasting for more than 72 hours; a headache that is not responding to pain-relief medications," could also be "red flags", requiring attention, Sudhir said. Recent changes in headache frequency, severity, or character may also be a risk factor that warrants further investigation.

Headache Symptom Evaluation
A headache could vary in features according to the cause.

"If you notice any of the above "red flags" associated with headaches, it is better to consult a neurologist and undergo a brain scan (CT or MRI) and/or other investigations to determine the underlying cause so that the appropriate treatment can be started," Sudhir said.

"Early recognition and prompt initiation of appropriate treatment can be life-saving in these conditions," he added.

Cluster Headache
Cluster headache is a periodic, intense, sharp, burning and explosive pain that begins suddenly on one side of the head and tends to get worse quickly, reaching its peak within 10 minutes.

Reference:

Migraine and other headache disorders - (https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/headache-disorders)

Source-IANS