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        New Message Board Archives >> Medications, Treatments, Therapies 2004 >> Explain your cph to me
        
(Message started by: Superpain on Mar 28^th, 2004, 1:54pm)

Title: Explain your cph to me
Post by Superpain on Mar 28^th, 2004, 1:54pm

A bunch of you have told me you think I have cph. After reading up, I think I have cph... I know I have clusters too, but besides the time differential and the rate of occurence, what is the difference? Is taking indomethacin the only way of being able to tell for sure?

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by pubgirl on Mar 28^th, 2004, 2:22pm

Superpain

"Paroxysmal hemicrania (PH), like Cluster Headache (CH), is characterised by being normally strictly unilateral, short, excruciating headaches that occur in association with cranial autonomic features. PH differs from CH mainly in the higher frequency and shorter duration of individual attacks, though there is a considerable overlap in these characteristics. However, unlike CH, PH responds in dramatic and absolute fashion to indomethacin, thereby underlining the importance of distinguishing it from CH. The attack profile of PH is highly characteristic. The headache is strictly unilateral. The pain is most often centred on the ocular, temporal, maxillary, or frontal regions; less often, the pain is centred on the neck, occiput or the retro-orbital regions. The pain is typically excruciating in severity and described as a throbbing, aching or boring sensation. The headache usually lasts 10–30 minutes, but can range from 2–45 minutes. It has an abrupt onset and cessation. Photophobia and nausea may accompany some attacks though vomiting and phonophobia are rare. During episodes of pain, some sufferers prefer to sit or lie still while the others pace about constantly. In PH the individual attacks occur at a high frequency. Typically, patients have more than five attacks daily though the frequency of attacks shows a considerable fluctuation, ranging from 1–40 daily"

So Superpain: if your symptoms fit this, if you have PH or CPH Indomethacin is 100% effective. There is no better diagnostic tool as Indo works for only a few Ch'ers.

Wendy

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Superpain on Mar 28^th, 2004, 2:48pm

That sounds like me...
I get the big bad clusters, but more so I get 5-10min HA's up to 20 or more times a day. They come on quick, and go away quick. And I do have neck sensitivity.
I have a neuro appt april 6, and I'm sure indomethacin is going to be the first thing I try. But april 6 is still a long ways off. I'm getting hammered with these things. I lost count of how many HA's I had last night. I used up over 3/4 of my O2 in one night, and I need some relief or I'm gonna lose my mind.
I understand that the indomethacin "test" only takes a day or two to become apparent wether you have cph or not. Is this true?
If there's anyone on indomethacin, or that has had to stop taking it, that could offer some extra info in my quest for relief, please pm me. I'd like to ask a few questions about side effects and such.

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Karla on Mar 28^th, 2004, 4:05pm

When I tried indomethacin it took effect and stopped my ha the second day on it. It was only effective for 5 months at preventing my ha and then I had to find a new preventative because that one quit working. Which the beast is so good at.

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Superpain on Mar 28^th, 2004, 4:25pm

on 03/28/04 at 16:05:54, Karla wrote:

It helped for ch or cph?

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Pegase on Mar 29^th, 2004, 12:12am

sometimes I feel a sensation of nausea and light seems to bother me a bit...but my HA last sometimes 2 hours so I think it's not CPH eventhough sometimes i think i might have both...

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Mark C on Mar 29^th, 2004, 4:46am

Use this table for a quick evaluation of your symptoms and which headache classification they fall into. (http://www.clusterheadaches.org/comparison_table.htm)

Suggested Criteria for Paroxysmal Hemicranias (http://www.clusterheadaches.org/library/general/ch_general.htm)

Goadsby Goldmine! (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=Goadsby+PJ&dispmax=50)

PFDAN's
Mark

Title: Re: Explain your cph to me
Post by Luke63 on Mar 29^th, 2004, 11:28am

Hey Super.......I think you have a Fried Brain syndrome also....... [smiley=hammer.gif] (just teasin) luke