Headache

In medicine a headache or cephalalgia is a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head. Some of the causes are benign while others are medical emergencies.

What is a Headache?

Headache is a common health complaint that affects millions of people in the UK. In the majority of cases, headache is not serious and can be easily treated with medication or lifestyle changes such as reducing stress or ensuring a good level of hydration.

Types of Headaches

Headache Causes and Triggers

Using a Headache Diary

What is Sinus Headache?

What is Tension Headache?

What is Vascular Headache?

What is a Cluster Headache?

What is Muscle Contraction Headache?

What is Medication Overuse Headache?

Can Contact Lenses Cause Headaches?

Headaches in Children

See more featured articles »

Headache Related to Eye Problems

Headaches in Children and Teenagers

Headache Evaluation in Children and Teenagers

Body Posture and Migraines

Migraine with Aura vs. Migraine without Aura

Biofeedback Therapy for Headaches

Frequent Headaches after a Traumatic Brain Injury

Does the Location of a Headache Matter?

Cluster Headaches: Treatment and Prevention

Latest Headache News and Research

Getting adequate sleep may help teens with migraines

Research indicates that starting school later in the morning yields health and academic benefits for high schoolers, whose natural body clock tends toward late-to-bed, late-to-rise habits.

25 Nov 2020

FDA expands approved indication for influenza treatment to include post-exposure prevention

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the approved indication for Xofluza (baloxavir marboxil) to include post-exposure prevention of influenza (flu) for patients 12 years of age and older after contact with an individual who has the flu.

23 Nov 2020

Mildly symptomatic COVID-19 patients may be contagious for longer than previously thought

Researchers in Brazil have reported two cases of people with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) shedding infectious virus for a significantly longer period than has previously been reported.

23 Nov 2020

Nasal dryness could be an early warning sign of COVID-19

A new study published by an international team of researchers on the preprint medRxiv* server in November 2020 details the nasal symptoms that are associated with anosmia and ageusia (loss of smell and taste) in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), including the early warning signs of infection.

23 Nov 2020

Swiss data shows COVID-19 three times more deadly than the flu

Despite this, COVID-19 is often downplayed to be only a seasonal flu by many. This may be because both influenza and COVID-19 have a similar initial presentation, and it is tough to distinguish between the two based on just the clinical presentation.

19 Nov 2020

Experts highlight latest advancements in neurogenic classification and pain management

There have been significant advances in knowledge regarding the pathology, etiology, assessment, and treatment of several significant neurogenic pain disorders regularly encountered by neurorehabilitation professionals in both inpatient and outpatient care.

18 Nov 2020

Children in Melbourne family developed COVID-19 immune response after exposure to virus

Children in a Melbourne family developed a COVID-19 immune response after chronic exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus from their parents, a new case report has found.

18 Nov 2020

Hydrogen therapy may help severely ill COVID-19 patients

Researchers from the Department of Critical Care Medicine, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, Chengdu in China, have explored the possibility of using hydrogen therapy on severely ill COVID-19 patients. The team published their study's findings, titled "Hydrogen: A Potential New Adjuvant Therapy for COVID-19 Patients," in the latest issue of the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology.

17 Nov 2020

Parasite infection discovery could help develop treatments for neurological disorders

New research into how a common parasite infection alters human behavior could help development of treatments for schizophrenia and other neurological disorders.

16 Nov 2020

Heart rate data from wearable devices helps predict SARS-CoV-2 infection

A team of scientists from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in the United States has developed a digital platform to identify severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and related symptoms in healthcare personnel.

9 Nov 2020

Chikungunya can infect central nervous system and impair cognitive, motor functions

A study conducted by an international team of researchers with FAPESP's support shows that infection by chikungunya virus can produce even more severe manifestations than the typical symptoms of the disease, such as acute fever, headache, rash, and intense joint and muscle pain.

4 Nov 2020

Study reveals seven “forms of disease” in COVID-19

In a study recently published in the top journal "Allergy", a team of MedUni Vienna scientists led by immunologist Winfried F. Pickl and allergologist Rudolf Valenta (both from the Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology) showed that there are seven "forms of disease" in COVID-19.

2 Nov 2020

Drug used to control blood pressure may improve cancer patients’ response to immunotherapy

The same biochemical triggers that spur a "fight or flight" response when we encounter threats may help tumor cells to thrive.

30 Oct 2020

SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins can directly impact the blood-brain barrier

Like a key, SARS-CoV-2 - the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) - attaches to specific molecules on the host cell surface, opening gateways into the cell interior.

30 Oct 2020

Study: Nearly 17% of recovered COVID-19 patients could still carry the virus

A new study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, published by Elsevier, presents new data that address important questions pertaining to the containment of the coronavirus pandemic: When should COVID-19 quarantine really end and which continuing symptoms may be more indicative of a positive test in recovered patients?

28 Oct 2020

Study focuses on electroencephalogram abnormalities of the brain

Throughout the pandemic, healthcare workers have seen more than just the lungs affected by COVID-19. Doctors have reported neurological complications including stroke, headache and seizures, but the information is limited to a number of individual reports that are not reflective of a larger population.

28 Oct 2020

Researchers generate a transcriptomic map of the COVID brain

COVID-19 is known to be associated with multiple changes in gene expression, but many of these are also seen in chronic brain conditions as well as in some abnormal mental conditions. A recent study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in October 2020 uncovers the molecular basis of this association.

26 Oct 2020

Startling high SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in Veracruz, Mexico

A surprising new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in October 2020 reports a very high seroprevalence of IgG antibodies against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the city of Vera Cruz, Mexico. They are among the highest to be reported anywhere in the world.

25 Oct 2020

Preventive antimalarial treatments drastically reduce malaria infections among school children

With nearly half of the world's population at risk for life-threatening malaria infections, University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) researchers and their colleagues identified an important public health measure to control the disease.

23 Oct 2020

New model could help identify people at risk for long COVID

Researchers in the UK, United States, and Sweden have presented new findings that could help identify individuals at risk of "long COVID" – a protracted course of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms last for more than 28 days.

22 Oct 2020