Triggers of Tension Headache and Migraine Are No Different
July 14, 2009 by dean · Leave a Comment
After comparing the triggers of migraine, tension headache and combined tension-type headache/migraine, no differences were found. In this research, patients, irrespective of their diagnosis, reported that emotional, dietary, physical, environmental, and hormonal factors were equally likely to trigger their headache or migraine … more evidence of a single headache and migraine process.
Can you imagine the delight of my patients when, having for years avoided chocolate or red wine (fancy living a life without chocolate or a glass of red wine!), and after treatment, chocolate, red wine, cheese etc no longer triggered headache or migraine. Clearly, neck disorders were sensitising their brainstem.
One authority suggests that dietary factors alone are not sufficient to trigger headache or migraine – that they probably act on a pre-existing condition.
Cheers
Dean
(Amery WK, Van den Bergh V. What can precipitating factors teach us about the pathogenesis of migraine? Headache. 1987;27:146-150
Scharff L, Tirk DC, Marcus DA. Triggers of headache episodes and coping responses of headache diagnostic groups. Headache 1995;35(7):397-403)
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