Of all the Headachesprobably the cluster headache is the worst that someone can suffer.
“This is a headache that most patients describe as excruciating and intolerable,” explains Dr. Dr. Pablo IrimiaCoordinator of the Headache Study Group of the
The positive part of suffering this headache is that:
“Fortunately, the pain crises have a shorter duration than other headaches. But even so, without treatment, these pain crises can last up to 3 hours, and they can also occur several times a day,” says the neurologist.
It is a type of headache classified by the as the most frequent of the . And the SEN estimates that in Spain there are currently some 50,000 people with this disease.
Cluster headache, the worst headache
The extreme pain caused by this headache makes it “a very disabling diseasewhich involves high absenteeism from work, significant limitations in the quality of life of those who suffer from it, as well as other comorbidities, mainly depression and sleep disorders”.
In fact, patients with cluster headache have 3 times more risk than the general population of developing a depressive disorder.
In addition, a recent study carried out in Spain indicates that this disease It causes problems to socialize and relate to your family and friends up to 33% of the patients who suffer from it.
The result is that 96% of patients find it necessary to modify their lifestyle, and 78% suffer from restrictions in their daily lives.
Cluster headache symptoms
Neurology specialists explain that cluster headache has very defined characteristics that allow it to be differentiated from other types of headache.
In addition to its strong intensity, this type of headache is characterized:
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It’s a headache unilateral (usually located around the eye and/or temple).
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It starts and stops abruptly.
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It is usually accompanied by nasal congestion, red and/or watery eyes.
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During seizures, patients show great motor restlessness.
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The crises usually appear almost always at the same time, with a predominance in the evening and/or at night in 73% of cases.
Early diagnosis, essential to avoid chronification
Despite the fact that it is a highly recognizable type of pain, the SEN estimates that in Spain there may be a delay in diagnosis of up to 3 years.
And it is that as with other pathologies, the patient with cluster headache goes through a long series of specialists before receiving a diagnosis from a neurologist. Thus, at least 30% of patients have been assessed before by other specialists.
Even more than 57% of patients have received a previous misdiagnosis about their disease.
This lack of diagnosis and adequate assessment means that it is currently estimated that half of the patients are not receiving adequate preventive treatment. And it also means that more than 30% of patients have not had access to oxygen as a symptomatic treatment, when it is one of the main therapies of choice.
“A correct diagnosis of this disease is essential, not only to allow patients to access the preventive and symptomatic treatments available, but also to prevent the disease from becoming chronic,” emphasizes Dr. Irimia.
“It is true that we are talking about a disease that is not very common, but its identification (even if it is only clinical, since there is still no specific test to diagnose it) should improve, both by medical professionals and by the patients themselves. “, says the neurologist.
“We must not forget that we are talking about a disease that tends to become chronic in 20% of caseswith the added drawback that 10% of the chronic forms are refractory to drugs”.
Every year some 1,000 new cases of this disease are diagnosed in Spain, which, in most patients, has a recurrent course, with remissions that can last several months or years.
However, in up to 20% of patients, cluster headache can become chronic.
Chronic cluster headache is called when pain crises occur for a year or more without remission or with periods of remission lasting less than three months.
Cluster headache risk factors
Cluster headache is not associated with a family history and its causes are still unclear. What has been determined is the existence of several triggering factors for this type of headache. Among which can be highlighted:
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Alcohol consumption.
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Consumption of vasodilators.
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Lack of sleep.
Once the cluster headache appears, the correct treatment “not only happens because patients have access to symptomatic treatments during the crises, but also because the need for preventive treatments is assessed. Especially when patients have more than two daily attacks or short periods of remission,” explains Dr. Irimia.
“But also that patients are correctly informed of the importance of abstaining from alcohol and tobacco.
And also that they avoid naps, intense exposure to light or heights. Because they are factors that facilitate the appearance of crises,” adds the neurologist.
Cluster headache usually debuts in young adults (the average age is around 30 years), although there are also cases in childhood, adolescence and in the elderly.
It predominantly affects the male sex in a ratio of 4:1.