7 Signs Your Headache Could Be Very Serious
Headaches, like the majority of conditions
that revolve around pain, can be very tricky to categorize. A headache
that is 'terrible' to one person, might feel mild to someone else.
However, speaking generally, according to Mark Morocco, a clinical
professor and ER doctor at the University of California Los Angeles
Medical Center, you need to see your primary care physician if your
headache status changes. That means if you have never had headaches, but
now you seem to have them all the time, your doctor should be made
aware of the change. Or, if the intensity of your regular migraines has
suddenly increased, that's also something worthy of your doctor's
attention.
Even in these situations, the chances are
good that your headaches are of the non-threatening variety. "People are
always worried about brain tumors," Morocco says. However, headaches
are not actually among the symptoms that experts usually associate with
tumors. On the other hand, there are some warning signs that your
headaches is a true medical emergency. Here's what you should look out
for:
1. You Have a 'Thunderclap' Headache
If a severe headache comes on suddenly -
"Like someone flipping a light switch or hitting you with a hammer" -
Morocco says that's something you should take very seriously. It could
be a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or bleeding in the brain caused by a
leaking aneurysm. "That's a dangerous headache, and you need to call
9-1-1 or have someone take you to the hospital," Morocco says.
To be absolutely clear, this isn't a sharp pain that recedes in seconds
or a few minutes. "It won't go away quickly," he adds. "But you don't
want to make the mistake of taking heavy pain pills and going to sleep."
2. Your Headache Changes Its Tune
If you experience migraines or tension headaches, an especially severe
headache isn't necessarily something you need to worry about. According
to Morocco, "one way to think about it is, if the quality of your
headaches were a song, is this the same song but with the volume turned
up higher?" If the answer to this question is yes, that's a reassuring
sign.
What Morocco worries about is if the song changes, meaning your headache
feels both severe and different from what you usually experience. If
this is the case, you should get yourself to the ER as this could be an
aneurysm or some other urgent medical situation.
3. Your Headache Isn't Your Only Issue
A bad headache accompanied by a fever is
concerning. "This could indicate an infection of the brain - something
like meningitis," Morocco says. It could also be a warning sign of
encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain. Especially if your bad
headache and fever are accompanied by an altered mental state - like
forgetting your kids' names - you should head to the ER.
4. The Ache Is Behind or Around Your Eye
According to Morocco, "if you have a headache with eye pain, and
especially if you have a change in your vision, that's an emergency."
The big concern here is acute glaucoma, or a buildup of pressure in your
eye that cuts off its blood flow and can lead to blindness. "What we
see a lot is a person goes to a movie, and when the lights go down and
the pupil dilates, that change in pressure leads to the headache and the
other symptoms," he says.
5. You Bumped Your Head - AND You're on
Blood Thinners
If you knock your head and are on blood thinners, a headache could
indicate a subdural hematoma, or a kind of slow bleed inside your brain
that - thanks to those thinners - doesn't clot. This condition can be
deadly, so you should get to an ER as soon as possible.
6. The Pain Is Concentrated in Your Temple
In the majority of cases, the location of
your headache isn't an indication of anything scary. However, if you're
older than 50 and your headache feels focused in one or both of your
temples, that could be indicative of temporal arteritis - a condition in
which the arteries in your temples become inflamed. If you have blurry
vision or a fever as well, it's best to see a doctor immediately.
7. Your Headache Is Contagious
If people around you - your family or coworkers for example - are
complaining about headaches at the same time you're experiencing an
unusual ache, that could be a sign of CO2 poisoning. If you step outside
and your headache lightens, warn everyone else, open windows and doors,
and have the place inspected for a CO2 leak.
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