Organization for Understanding Cluster Headaches was created in 1999.
Since some cluster headaches are triggered by stress, stress reduction techniques, such as yoga, meditation, and regular exercise, may be effective.
Yes. Cluster headaches are an especially severe kind of episodic headache, to the point where they are also known as "suicide headaches." There is no confusing them with tension headaches. Cluster headaches involve extremely severe, one-sided head pain which is centered around the eye. The pain is stabbing, throbbing in nature. Cluster headaches are so-named because the people who have them will have them every day, usually for a period of weeks or months. They will start at around the same time every day. Thankfully, while other types of headaches, such as migraines, may last for days, cluster headaches usually last a short amount of time, such as 30 minutes to an hour. During the rest of their day, they will be symptom free, although being in such intense pain can be exhausting. Not all people who have cluster headaches will have them go away after weeks or months. They will have what is known as Chronic Cluster Headaches, which means that every single day they will be hit with intense pain. Other symptoms that go along with the pain of cluster headaches are the eye on the affected side tearing up, as well as the nostril on that same side suddenly running, although these symptoms do not happen in all people. For some people, the eyelid will droop. More men than women are affected by cluster headaches.
There are some types of prescription medications that may prevent cluster headaches.
Alcohol, tobacco, histamine, or stress can trigger cluster headaches. Decreased blood oxygen levels (hypoxemia) can also act as a trigger, particularly during the night when an individual is sleeping.
However, episodic cluster headaches occur during oneto five-month periods followed by six to 24-month attack-free, or remission, periods. There is no such reprieve for chronic cluster headache sufferers.
In general, drug therapy offers effective treatment.
Cluster headaches afflict less than 0.5% of the population and predominantly affect men; approximately 80% of sufferers are male. Onset typically occurs in the late 20s, but there is no absolute age restriction.
Approximately 80% of cluster headaches are classified as episodic; the remaining 20% are considered chronic. Both display the same symptoms.
There are many types of recurrent headaches. Migraines, cluster headaches, and chronic daily headache being the prime candidates.
Cluster headaches are the least common type of chronic headaches, affecting about 0.4% of adult males in the United States and 0.08% of adult females. The gender ratio is 7.5-5 M:1 F.
Cluster Headaches: They are called cluster headaches because the attacks come in groups. The pain arrives with little, if any, warning, and it has been described as the most severe and intense of any headache type. It generally lasts from 30 to 45 minutes, although it might persist for several hours before it disappears. Unfortunately, it can reoccur later in the day. Most sufferers experience one to four headaches a day during a cluster period. Cluster headaches frequently surface during the morning or late at night; the cluster cycle can last weeks or months and then can disappear for months or years. Clusters often occur during spring or autumn and, thus, are often incorrectly associated with allergies. Approximately 10 percent of the sufferers, however, experience chronic cluster headaches that occur all year long. It is estimated that less than one percent of the population are victims of cluster headaches, and they encounter the headache somewhere between the ages of 20 and 45. More men (about five to one) than women suffer from cluster headaches.