{"id":7709,"date":"2023-10-10T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-10T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/?p=7709"},"modified":"2023-10-10T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-10-10T12:00:00","slug":"headaches-and-covid-19-long-haulers-what-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/?p=7709","title":{"rendered":"Headaches and COVID-19 Long-Haulers: What to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

September 16, 2021\u00a0\/\u00a0Brain & Spine<\/a> The Cleveland Clinic<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skull-pounding headaches can continue for weeks or even months after you test positive for COVID-19, with around-the-clock pain separated only by periods of agonizing and extreme spikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s one of the most common symptoms being experienced by a group known as COVID-19 long-haulers<\/a>, or those with lingering issues related to the coronavirus, says headache specialist Emad Estemalik, MD<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is it happening? A definitive answer remains elusive, but there\u2019s no question the problem exists in great numbers, judging by multiple studies<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So let\u2019s look at what we know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New daily persistent headaches<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A headache<\/a> that develops in connection to a viral illness or infection isn\u2019t particularly groundbreaking, but the situation is being seen more \u2014 and with greater pain intensity \u2014 in people following a COVID-19 diagnosis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The condition is known as a new daily persistent headache, and it can last for months even for people who had only a mild case of COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re left after the recovery with a new onset headache that doesn\u2019t remit,\u201d says Dr. Estemalik. \u201cA patient will tell you they have a 24\/7 baseline of headaches or pain that gets worse from time to time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you regularly deal with migraines<\/a> or other headache disorders, the frequency may increase following a COVID-19 diagnosis. Again, this pain can persist for weeks or even months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Treating COVID-19 headaches<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Finding relief from a daily persistent headache isn\u2019t easy given that there\u2019s no clear etiology, or cause, behind the pain. Research has yet to pinpoint why the headaches persist. Brain scans of those with persistent headaches tend to be normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Complicating matters is that a headache is often just one of many symptoms experienced by COVID-19 long-haulers. Many also report fatigue, shortness of breath, achy joints and chest pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given all of that, \u201cthis tends to be a very, very challenging headache to treat or manage,\u201d notes Dr. Estemalik.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Providers typically use an \u201cinterdisciplinary approach,\u201d with a variety of treatment options put to use to find what might work best. This can include a combination of medications as well as psychological and physical rehabilitation techniques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no one proven way to get results, says Dr. Estemalik: \u201cClinical judgment is very important to make the right determination.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home remedies for COVID-19 headaches<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most at-home medicine cabinets include a bottle of over-the-counter painkillers<\/a> \u2014 typically aspirin or ibuprofen<\/a> \u2014 that gets twisted opened in the search for relief when a regular headache strikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re dealing with a COVID-19 headache, odds are you\u2019ll go the same route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A word of caution if you do: Don\u2019t lean on this approach for more than a week. \u201cWe sometimes see these medications cause what we call a rebound headache or medication overuse headache,\u201d says Dr. Estemalik.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The condition is exactly what it sounds like: A headache brought on by frequent use of a medicine in a short span of time. Exceeding daily dosage recommendations may trigger a rebound headache. Ditto with caffeine use with the medications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If an over-the-counter medication doesn\u2019t offer the relief you typically see, take that as a sign. \u201cThat\u2019s when you want to reach out to your primary care doctor to really address the issue,\u201d says Dr. Estemalik.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Could that headache be unrelated to the pandemic?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Headaches are part of life. Statistically, 3 out of 4 adults across the world will deal with a pain in their head at some point this year. Another fact? There are more than 150 different kinds of headaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So that headache that\u2019s making you rub your temples may not be connected to a recent bout with COVID-19 or a sign that you contracted the coronavirus<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It could be linked to allergies<\/a>\u2026 or stress<\/a>\u2026 or the weather<\/a>\u2026 or even certain food and drinks<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you have a headache alone in absence of any other symptoms, it\u2019s probably unrelated to COVID-19,\u201d says Dr. Estemalik. \u201cBut always stay on top of your symptoms and \u2014 when in doubt \u2014 see your doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The best defense against COVID-19 headache<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Estemalik offers three words of advice for anyone hoping to avoid the headaches and cytokine storm that comes with COVID-19: Get the vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVaccination<\/a> reduces your chance of getting the infection, and it also has an incredible effect of reducing serious illness and long-haul symptoms even if you were to catch it,\u201d says Dr. Estemalik. \u201cIt\u2019s the best thing you can do to avoid the virus and what it brings.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

September 16, 2021\u00a0\/\u00a0Brain & Spine The Cleveland Clinic Skull-pounding headaches can continue for weeks or even months after you test positive for COVID-19, with around-the-clock pain separated only by periods […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7711,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[203],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-headache"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7709\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}