Cluster headaches Q&As
Published by Bupa's health information team, December 2008.
Answers to questions about cluster headaches
This section contains answers to common questions about this topic. Questions have been suggested by health professionals, website feedback and requests via email.
- What's the difference between a cluster headache and other types of headache?
- Can I tell when a cluster attack is coming on?
- Will I always get cluster headaches?
What's the difference between a cluster headache and other types of headache?
Cluster headaches do have specific symptoms that make them distinct from other types of headaches such as migraines or tension headaches.
Cluster headaches always cause pain on one side of the head, usually centred around your eye, together with a running or redness of the eye with or without a running nose. The episodes are remarkably similar each time and can wake you at night, often at exactly the same time. They can occur many times in a week or month, hence the term cluster, and then disappear for months or even years.
Another key feature of a cluster headache is a sense of restlessness and agitation during an attack.
Explanation
There are many different types of headaches, with different causes and different symptoms. Cluster headaches have a number of features that make them different to other headaches.
As well as the intense pain that affects one side of your head, you may have other symptoms that affect the same side of the head which include:
- reddened eye
- running or blocked nostril
- drooping eyelid
- constricted pupil
- flushing or sweating
Migraines sometimes affect one side of the head and may also cause similar symptoms. However, cluster headaches have some key differences:
- short attacks
- they start and end abruptly
- they occur at regular times in the day
- restlessness
- attacks are clustered with periods of no problems between
Further information
- OUCH (UK) - Organisation for the Understanding of Cluster Headache
01646 651979
www.ouchuk.org
Sources
- Cluster headaches. OUCH(UK). www.ouchuk.org, accessed 22 August 2008
Can I tell when a cluster attack is coming on?
Sometimes your cluster headaches occur at the same time each year but usually they start without any warning. There are signs that signify that a cluster headache might be about to occur. In this way they are similar to migraines.
Some examples include:
- tiredness and yawning
- feeling sick
- being sick
- being overly sensitive to smells, sounds and light
Explanation
As their name suggests, cluster headaches occur in bouts. How often attacks happen in a bout can vary between individuals. They might happen every other day, or they might happen several times in a day.
Before an attack, you may experience feelings of tiredness or sickness. This can also happen to people who have migraines as well.
What causes a cluster headache isn't well understood, and why these feelings of tiredness or sickness can mark the onset of an attack also isn't known.
Further information
- OUCH (UK) - Organisation for the Understanding of Cluster Headache
01646 651979
www.ouchuk.org
Sources
- Cluster headaches. OUCH(UK). www.ouchuk.org, accessed 22 August 2008
Will I always get cluster headaches?
As yet, there hasn't been much research done about cluster headaches over the long term. However, the evidence suggests that, for most, cluster headaches last for life.
Explanation
Though some studies suggest that cluster headaches seem to last for life, the type of attacks may change over time. One study indicated that about one third of people who have chronic cluster headaches with no remission between bouts develop episodic cluster headaches, with remission periods of several months or years between bouts. Around one in ten people with episodic cluster headaches developed chronic cluster headaches.
Encouragingly, the length of time between bouts for many people with cluster headaches seems to grow as people get older.
Further information
- OUCH (UK) - Organisation for the Understanding of Cluster Headache
01646 651979
www.ouchuk.org
Sources
- Cluster headaches. OUCH(UK). www.ouchuk.org, accessed 22 August 2008
Related topics
This information was published by Bupa's health information team and is based on reputable sources of medical evidence. It has been peer reviewed by Bupa doctors. The content is intended for general information only and does not replace the need for personal advice from a qualified health professional.
Publication date: December 2008
Cluster headache factsheet
Visit the cluster headache health factsheet for more information.
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