Cluster Headache: Intense Pain Localised on One Side of the Head

Some headaches come on suddenly, are extremely intense, and recur in an almost predictable pattern. One important warning sign is pain localised around a single eye, accompanied by symptoms on the same side of the face.

What is cluster headache

Cluster headache causes severe episodes of pain, most often around or behind one eye. During an attack, other symptoms may also appear on the same side of the face:

• watering eye
• redness of the eye
• nasal congestion or discharge
• drooping eyelid

The attacks occur in clusters, sometimes several times a day, over periods of weeks or months, followed by symptom-free intervals.

How treatment is approached

Because the pain comes on rapidly, treatment for an attack must act just as quickly. Oxygen therapy and certain medications administered by injection or nasal spray can halt attacks. Preventive treatment aims to reduce the number of attacks during the cluster period.

A diagnosis established by a neurologist is important in order to distinguish cluster headache from migraine and other causes of severe head pain.