How is Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead Defined?
Very often people complain of headache with pain going across their foreheads. This type of headache across forehead is termed as a frontal headache. This type of headache may either be across the forehead region or be isolated to just one spot across the forehead. Frontal headache or headache across forehead may also extend down to the eyes with a nagging eyeball pain. The pain may also cover the entire face and the individual may be completely debilitated due to headache across the forehead until is resolves. Frontal headache or headache across forehead normally lasts for a short period of time up to may be a couple of hours but it has a tendency to recur again and again to haunt the patient. Rarely, frontal headache or headache across the forehead may persist for a few days on a continuous basis.
Frontal headache or headache across forehead is not a symptom of a serious medical condition but if the pain is severe in intensity and recurs quite frequently then certain tests may be required in order to identify the cause of Frontal headache or headache across forehead. Also, there may be certain triggers that can cause headache across forehead like consuming alcohol the night before or other factors like being out in the sun for a prolonged period of time. Such triggers may be prevented by consuming alcohol in moderation and using sunglasses and sunscreens to prevent such headaches.
What Causes Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead?
Some of the most common causes of frontal headache or headache across forehead are:
Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead Caused Due to Muscle Strain: This is one of the leading causes of Headache Across the Forehead. It happens when the muscles around the frontal region of the head becomes tight and go into a spasm. The normal causes for a muscle strain are excessive stress, extreme fatigue after a hard day at work, poor posture of the head while looking at the computer screen for long periods of time. Frontal headache or headache across the forehead may also be caused due to dehydration or being out in hot weather without proper intake of fluids or resting in shade.
Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead Caused Due to Eyestrains: Overusing the eyes may also result in frontal headache or headache across the forehead. In today’s world where computer and television have become a part and parcel of our lives, our eyes are easily strained after gazing at the screens either of a computer or a television for extremely long periods of time. Reading a book in poor or dim light may also cause the eyes to be strained leading to frontal headache or headache across the forehead.
Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead Caused Due to Sinus: Frontal headache or headache across the forehead can also be caused due to pain in the paranasal sinuses. Pain in the paranasal sinuses can be caused due to conditions like sinusitis, an infection to the sinuses, or sinus congestion and may lead to headache across the forehead.
Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead Caused Due to Migraine: Migraine disorder is a medical condition in which an individual is prone to frequent headaches and due to this reason the individual may experience frontal headache or headache across forehead. There is no clear cut cause for migraines but it is believed to be caused to certain changes in the levels of the hormones in the brain either due to genetic or environmental factors. Frontal headache or headache across the forehead due to migraines will be accompanied by other symptoms like blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, or dizziness. Relief of symptoms may be achieved by lying down in a dark room.
What are the Symptoms Accompanied with Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead?
Frontal headache or headache across forehead is not a disease condition but is a symptom of an underlying medical condition. The location of the pain, the severity and frequency may differ from individual to individual depending on the cause of the frontal headache. A cause may be determined studying the intensity, location, and frequency of the headaches alone, although the results may not always be accurate. Some of the symptoms that accompany Headache Across the Forehead are:
- Burning and tearing of the eyes
- Diplopia
- Runny nose
- Frequent sneezing
- Jaw pain
- Nausea with or without vomiting
- Dizziness.
Diagnosis of Frontal Headache or Headache Across the Forehead
If an individual suffers from frontal headache or headache across the forehead more frequently then it becomes essential to find out the cause of the pain. The physician will start out by taking a history as to when the symptoms started, are there any auras prior to the headaches starting and the like. Often at times, the symptoms the patient experiences may give a clue as to what may be causing headache across the forehead, but to rule out a potentially serious medical condition, the physician may recommend conducting an MRI or CT scan of the brain and the sinuses for identifying a cause of frontal headache or headache across the forehead.
What is the Treatment for Frontal Headache or Headache Across Forehead?
If any potential serious condition has been ruled out for frontal headache or headache across forehead, the physician may start with recommending conservative treatments. This may include lifestyle changes in which the patient needs to identify what triggers a headache and then try to avoid those triggers. Citing an example, if frontal headache or headache across forehead is caused due to spending a lot of time in front of the computer then the physician will recommend taking a break every hour or so for 5-10 minutes to rest and avoid straining the eyes resulting in frontal headache or headache across forehead.
The physician may also recommend certain exercises for relief of pain. If lifestyle changes alone are not that helpful in relieving frontal headache or headache across forehead then the physician may also recommend certain medications to go along with lifestyle changes for relief of pain. These may be pain killers like ibuprofen or Tylenol. Muscle relaxants or balms also help in reliving frontal headache or headache across forehead. In some cases opioid medications may also be prescribed on a limited basis. In rare cases, antidepressants or anticonvulsants may be prescribed for relief of frontal headache or headache across forehead. If eyestrain is the cause of Headache Across the Forehead then no particular medications is required for relief apart from lifestyle changes.
In cases where sinusitis is the cause of frontal headache or headache across forehead, then the following may be prescribed for relief of the pain:
- Decongestants
- Oral steroids
- Pain killers
- Antibiotics.
For Headache Across the Forehead due to migraine disorder, then treatment is two fold, one is preventative and the other is abortive. There are medications for both. In preventative form, the patient will have to take medication when he or she gets an aura for a migraine attack like feeling dizzy, having nausea or blurred vision. In abortive form, the medications will be given after the headache has started. Triptans are the most preferred medication given for migraine disorder causing frontal headache or headache across forehead.
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