Health's Book

Definition

A cluster headache is one-sided head pain that may involve tearing of the eyes and a stuffy nose. The headaches occur repeatedly every day at the same time for several weeks and then go away.

See also:

* Headache
* Migraine headache
* Tension headache

Symptoms

A cluster headache begins as a severe, sudden headache. The headache most commonly strikes 2 to 3 hours after falling asleep, usually during the dreaming (rapid eye movement, or REM) phase.

The pain occurs on one side of the head. It may be described as:

* Burning
* Sharp
* Steady

The pain may occur in and around one eye. It may:

* Involve one side of the face from neck to temples
* Quickly gets worse, peaking within 5 to 10 minutes

The strongest pain may last 30 minutes to 2 hours.

The eye and nose on the same side of the head pain may also be affected. Symptoms can include:

* Swelling under or around the eye (may affect both eyes)
* Excessive tearing
* Red eye
* Rhinorrhea (runny nose) or one-sided stuffy nose (same side as the head pain)
* Red, flushed face

Cluster headaches may occur daily for months, alternating with periods without headaches (episodic), or they can recur for a year or more without stopping (chronic).