Differential Diagnosis for Headache
- Single most likely diagnosis:
- Tension headache: This is the most common type of headache and is often described as a band or a squeezing sensation around the forehead, usually accompanied by muscle tension in the neck and scalp.
- Other Likely diagnoses:
- Migraine: Characterized by severe, throbbing pain, often unilateral, and can be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sound.
- Sinus headache: Caused by inflammation or infection of the sinuses, leading to pain and pressure in the face and forehead.
- Cluster headache: Extremely painful, occurs in cycles or clusters, and is often accompanied by nasal congestion and eye watering.
- Medication overuse headache: Caused by frequent or excessive use of pain medications, leading to rebound headaches.
- Do Not Miss (ddxs that may not be likely, but would be deadly if missed.):
- Subarachnoid hemorrhage: A life-threatening condition caused by bleeding into the space surrounding the brain, often presenting with a sudden, severe headache.
- Meningitis: Inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, which can be caused by infection and is a medical emergency.
- Temporal arteritis: Inflammation of the blood vessels in the temples, which can lead to blindness if not treated promptly.
- Brain tumor: Although rare, a brain tumor can cause headaches, especially if it is large or located in a sensitive area.
- Rare diagnoses:
- Trigeminal neuralgia: A chronic pain condition that affects the trigeminal nerve, causing intense, shock-like pain in the face.
- Occipital neuralgia: A condition characterized by inflammation or irritation of the occipital nerves, leading to pain in the back and side of the head.
- Hypnic headache: A rare type of headache that occurs only during sleep and wakes the person up.
- Thunderclap headache: An extremely severe headache that reaches its maximum intensity within a minute, often indicative of a subarachnoid hemorrhage or other serious condition.