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        New Message Board Archives >> 2005 Cluster Headache Specific Posts >> Head trauma
        
(Message started by: Ellick on Feb 26^th, 2005, 12:34pm)

Title: Head trauma
Post by Ellick on Feb 26^th, 2005, 12:34pm

I know lots of Ch sufferers never had a head trauma.

Do those of you who had think it started your CH s off.

I definitely think my head traumas did something which caused some pressure which in turn set the hypothalmus on an unpredictable, unbalanced and untimed melatonin hunt and destroy. I've always had bad headaches. I have also put my head in the way of some big impacts.

I am still able to feel the site and size of the biggest injury 25 years on.

My Chs run right through it and I still have electrical sensations on the right side of my head. Drs always ask if I was knocked out on that one. When I say no, they discount the possibility of an injury.

Ellick

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by kopfschmerz on Feb 26^th, 2005, 1:08pm

I've found no correlation between head trauma and cluster headaches. I had a traumatic head injury at age 13 and had a bullet graze the top of my head at age 27 but no after-effects from either. I got my first cluster at age 30 and my next attack 8 years later, so for me there is no correlation and I've found none in the literature.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by yikes-another-one on Feb 26^th, 2005, 1:14pm

Had a few falls with head injuries as a toddler....
and an electrical accident from a carnival ride....

but never "suffered"

until this monster sidetracked my life at age 28.....

All MRI's say I do have a brain....
and no trouble using it once in a while....wink.

Some doctors are thinking our hypo..thing
was larger at birth....

surprise....

we are defective....

like that is a shock.....

:)

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by Ellick on Feb 26^th, 2005, 2:31pm

An osteopath told me that one of my injuries had created a calus effect underneath my skull which would sometimes affect the way my brain had to work. At that time I was experiencing very bad headaches and visual disturbance in one eye with some loss of balance. The neurologist told me I had migraine , the osteopath fixed it in 20 minutes. He told me to take care that I had adequate rest and kept healthy and that the problems may reocur from time totime. Sinus problems came later but only after a stereotypical Ch attack which alternated sides during hits. Allergy related problems have always been around.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by Bob_Johnson on Feb 26^th, 2005, 4:53pm

Headache. 1992 Nov;32(10):504-6.

Cluster headache following head injury: a case report and review of the literature.

Turkewitz LJ, Wirth O, Dawson GA, Casaly JS.

Midwest Center for Head-Pain Management, Troy, Ohio 45373.

A relation between head trauma and cluster headache is frequently described in the literature. The percentage of cluster patients with a history of head injury is approximately 16.5 when several large studies are reviewed. The present paper reports another case where there is close proximity between head injury and the onset of cluster headache. A review of the literature attempts to document the supposition that there is indeed a causal or precipitous role for head injury in cluster cephalgia pathogenesis.

Publication Types:
Case Reports
Review
Review of Reported Cases

PMID: 1468909 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by kissmyglass on Feb 26^th, 2005, 8:17pm

on 02/26/05 at 12:34:03, Ellick wrote:

I have also put my head in the way of some big impacts.

I would stop doing that...

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by BobG on Feb 27^th, 2005, 2:56am

I've never in my life ever had any kind of head injury yet I've suffered clusters for about 30 years now.

I think if someone had head trauma so bad that the hypothalmus was injured then they probably had enough damage to the brain that they could not be able to read what is written here.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by floridian on Feb 27^th, 2005, 7:45am

on 02/27/05 at 02:56:04, BobG wrote:

Brain injury is not The Cause of cluster headache, but it increases the risk. One Italian study (below) found that the only 3 perceived risk factors that stood up to statistical analysis were brain trauma, smoking, and family history. How these factors increase the risk is not clear. Other factors may be important and may show up in studies that are larges or designed differently, but brain trauma does seem important.

Boxers commonly develop parkinson-like problems, and it takes years to become apparent, even longer to become disabling. Even with the padded gloves, the punches rattles and bruises the brain. And over time, that damage plus aging causes problems.

Emotional depression is a recognized consequence of traumatic brain injury - more than half of people with serious brain injuries go on to develop depression, and it is not 'I'm so sorry for myself I am depressed' - its a 'my brain is glitching in the regions that control emotion.'

Quote:

Neuroepidemiology. 1995;14(3):123-7.

Case-control study on the epidemiology of cluster headache. I: Etiological factors and associated conditions. Italian Cooperative Study Group on the Epidemiology of Cluster Headache (ICECH).

[No authors listed]

The etiological and physiopathological mechanisms of cluster headache (CH) are still largely unknown. The majority of the studies published on the possible risk factors and conditions associated with CH rely on either anecdotal observations or generalizations and have not been supported by serious epidemiological investigations. The aim of this case-control study was to evaluate the real association of life habits and general risk factors with CH. CH was associated only with cigarette smoking, head trauma and a positive family history for headache. Further epidemiologic studies are probably necessary in order to find clues to CH etiology.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by Ellick on Feb 27^th, 2005, 7:57am

on 02/26/05 at 20:17:50, kissmyglass wrote:

I would stop doing that...

Have tried but the more you get hit the harder it becomes.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by BobG on Feb 27^th, 2005, 8:18am

on 02/27/05 at 07:45:34, floridian wrote:

One Italian study (below) found that the only 3 perceived risk factors that stood up to statistical analysis were brain trauma, smoking, and family history.

I have my doubts about the Italians.

Brain trauma..we already talked about that.

Smoking....a habit, an addiction. I think the hypothalmus has something to do with addictions. The Italians my have thought that because more cluster sufferers smoke than the general population there may be a connection. I don't think that is true. I think, after reading this board for 5 years, that clusterheads have more addictions than the general population. And not just addictions to the 'sin' addictions - smoking, drinking, gambling. How many are addicted to their daily routine? How many are addicted to coming to this board every day? How many are addicted to over eating? This could go on and on.

Family history......I can't go along with either. No one, that I have ever heard of, on either side of my family has serious headaches such as migraines or clusters except me. Yes, there are some folks with more than one clusterhead in a family but it is rare.

This is only my opinion. I am not a doctor nor Italian.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by floridian on Feb 27^th, 2005, 8:58am

on 02/27/05 at 08:18:28, BobG wrote:

This is only my opinion. I am not a doctor nor Italian.

:) Some of my best friends are doctors, others are Italian.

There's the eternal problem of figuring out what is causation and what is just correlation. But I think those 3 factors are more than correlated. Time will tell.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by BobG on Feb 27^th, 2005, 9:23am

on 02/27/05 at 08:58:01, floridian wrote:

:) Some of my best friends are doctors, others are Italian.

LMAO. [smiley=laugh.gif]

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by Frank_W on Feb 27^th, 2005, 10:23am

on 02/27/05 at 08:58:01, floridian wrote:

:) Some of my best friends are doctors, others are Italian.

*chuckle*

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by sandie99 on Feb 28^th, 2005, 3:36am

Well... I have fell down and hurt my head for a while at least twice. Does that count as head trauma? [smiley=huh.gif]
if it does, they took place years before CH started so I find it hard to link those two.

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by Bob_Johnson on Feb 28^th, 2005, 9:03am

Nothing posted here claims that all cluster arises from head trauma. The previous abstract and this one say: Some cases of cluster can develop from head trauma. "Multiple causation" is common to many medical disorders.

This is one of the realities which makes it so difficult to both understand clusters and to find a cure.
---
Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2004 Apr;8(2):133-9.

Cluster headache mimics.

Carter DM.

This article discusses cluster headache and a variety of cluster mimics, with the intention of aiding the practitioner in differentiating between primary cluster headache and secondary forms of cluster. Secondary causes of cluster headache include infections, tumors, vascular abnormalities, and head trauma. In addition, other trigeminal autonomic cephalgias occasionally can be difficult to distinguish from primary cluster headache.

Publication Types:
Review
Review, Tutorial

PMID: 14980148 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by JJA on Feb 28^th, 2005, 1:19pm

on 02/28/05 at 09:03:41, Bob_Johnson wrote:

Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2004 Apr;8(2):133-9.

Cluster headache mimics.

Carter DM.

This article discusses cluster headache and a variety of cluster mimics, with the intention of aiding the practitioner in differentiating between primary cluster headache and secondary forms of cluster. Secondary causes of cluster headache include infections, tumors, vascular abnormalities, and head trauma. In addition, other trigeminal autonomic cephalgias occasionally can be difficult to distinguish from primary cluster headache.

That looks interesting...but not $25 interesting. Anyone have full text?

Jesse

Title: Re: Head trauma
Post by jokrs2 on Feb 28^th, 2005, 1:45pm

I have had a severe brain trauma injury being run over by a car and dragged which resulted in having my scalp reattached. Later tests showed a variety of abnormalities during EEG as a teenager. One doctor said "I was accident prone", and refused to treat me. I do get severe tension in upper back and neck possibly caused by lifting injury to area in muscle behind my heart which more times than not is present during onset..... and after lydocaine injection into muscle area EKG passed after showing failing valve pre injection. I know it sounds wacky, but it was thier electronics. Also diagnosed with RLS. Finally was given SSDI for mental reasons....duh. I was able to read Bob's note :-)LOL
Many questions...not many answers. Thanks for helping with perspectives. Praying for all to be healed sooner before later