Cluster Headaches - anyone suffer or know someone who does?

[MrsC]

Hi all

A quick question re - cluster headaches. Spent a good few hours in A&E today with Mr C. These have been happening over the Christmas period and once before a few weeks ago (just the 1 attack) Weren't sure what was happening and it is worrying to see. Diagnosed with this today and was looking for any advice please x

[Florence Fennel]

Sorry to hear this Mrs C, it must have been very scarey for you both. I do know of someone at work who suffers with this condition and I think it's chronic (I hope Mr C's is not). If I remember rightly he takes Prednisolone. Has Mr C got to have a CT or an MRI scan? I do hope you get advice and treatment as soon as possible.

[MrsC]

Hi Florence

Not mentioned MRI etc at the mo, but told to take back to A&E should symptoms worsen. Not nice

[Florence Fennel]

No it's not nice at all, especially if you're worried and uninformed. Are you seeing your GP? He may arrange for Mr C to see a specialist. Hope all is soon well.

[shirlthegirl43]

Mother in law used to suffer from cluster headaches - along with migraine. She worked out what the triggers were.

I get very nasty headaches at this time of year if there is much sun about - it 'glints' off things and gives me a rotten migraine.

[Patchninja]

Crikey, I've just googled it and it sounds terrible. I hope he finds a successful treatment soon.

[Sheepish]

My cousin came down with these, or something similar, earlier in the year. He went through a tough time while the diagnosis was being narrowed down. I forget the name of the other possibility but the symptoms are very similar and it's hard to differentiate them.

The treatment took time to narrow down. As I understand it they had to go for trial and error on the various drugs and dose sizes that might work to see which were appropriate for him. However now it is under control and he's working as normal.

[susieq100]

I heard a section about these on Radio 4 last week sometime, where a 'new' treatment had been tried out at a London hospital .. it involved trepanning ... anyway the patients had made fantastic recoveries, but one chap had been suffering for over 3 years before the neurosurgeon tried this technique. I'll google it and see if I can find the article - not sure if it was on the News or something like Medicine Now.

[susieq100]

[URL=http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/ferguswalsh/2010/12/brain_surgery_to_relieve_headaches.html[/URL]

Hope that this link works.