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Neurology  (Expert Forum)
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HeadPains
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MedHelp Member's Question

HeadPains

by LisaPugliano, Feb 03, 2001 12:00AM
This all began around the end of December, when I was experiencing very bad pain in my left jaw...I went to the dentist and they did a root canal on one of my front teeth because she said that she didn't see anything wrong in the back of my mouth.  Everything was fine for the first couple of days and then I started experiencing attacks of feeling very light headed and nauseuated.  I then started to get a feeling like there was something in my head behind my left ear, and a burning sensation that would cover the top of my head and down my shoulders and back.  My family doctor suspected shingles but there was nothing there...My parents took me to the emergency room one night and they did a cat scan and it showed nothing....a couple of days later, I was in pain again and my family doctor had me admited into the hospital.  They ran a lot of blood work, and did a mri, and a mra, and everything came out normal...I was also experiencing a lot of pressure in my head and left ear, so was referred me to a ent...he took a look in my ear and said I had no ear infection, and then asked me to open my mouth when I did my jaw cracked, something I have been able to do for years, and he suggested tmj...(since this I have seen a tmj specialist and he said there was muscle problems but his x-ray machine was down and he couldn't make a diagnosis for sure.)  now three weeks later, I still am having pain...the headaches have changed...last friday I was taken to the hospital again because It felt like someone had a knife in my head and was turning, it took three different pain killers to take the pain away. They ran another cat scan that showed nothing.   It has been a whole week now...I have seen a neurologist and she seems like she won't even listen to me...she says that the tests were ok, so it must be migraines...she told me to keep a journal to tell her how I feel but when I brought it to her she said that she couldn not read my writing...since last friday when I was back in the hospital, I have been experiencing sharp pains in the left side of my head that come and go, a lot of pressure in my left ear and on the left side of my head, everything seems to get worse when I lie down, I have not slept a whole night in about a month, I seem to wake up every 2-3 hours.  The past three days I get these stabbing cramping pains in the left side of my head almost constantaly. As the day goes on it turns into a throbbing pain, with extreme nauseua....Like today for example it happened like that again, I took an advil migraine and went to sleep, woke up and now my head feels really heavy and I am having sharp pains on the left side of my head...If I move my eyebrows my scalp feels really tight..I also have been having a lot of pain around my left eye, with a lot of pressure right by my nose, and blurry vison in just that eye.  The left side of my head is really sensitive especially around my temple, If I touch it, it hurts pretty bad, my scalp has also been really sensitive especially where the stabbing pain occurs.  If I am in a car every bump makes me have a head pain...And I call them head pains, because they are not like headaches, they are these horrible pains in the left side of my head.  Right now I am taking ativan, which my family psychian prescribed a couple of weeks ago, the neurologist tried pamelor, which kept me up at night so now she has me on propranolol, which is supposed to stop the "migraines" from happening...she also has me on diclofenac, and methylprednisolone tablets (21 pack) which I have been taking for 4 days now with no help, with that she gave me potassium, and pepcid....I am going crazy here I have never been the type to take any pills and now I am on so many....there are some other things that have happened that have concerned me....a couple of weeks ago, I feel asleep and was waking up and couldn't move I tried to call out to my mom but couldn't say anything I was frozen...I got out of it and went up to her room, but it scared me...then last week I took a hot bath, when I got out I stood up and my pupils got really big and I got really light headed...tonight I was sleeping again on the couch and I knew I was up and I felt all the pain go to my neck and was frozen I tried to call for my mom again but nothing would come out....since I have been up my mom suggested that I take another diclofenac for the pain, the left side of my head is hurting, it is hard to explain, it is like a light stabbing, throbbing pain, that goes down to my neck, also my left forehead is lightly hurting, I am feeling sick to my stomach, and I feel like I can't keep my head up....I have been very light headed, if I touch the area around my eye it hurts, and the pressure...I can't sleep, I can't eat, I have lost 25 pounds in the last 3 weeks, I don't even know what I am doing anymore, I just want the pain to go away...if I put my head down or lie down the pain and pressure just get worse, I feel like my whole head is throbbing with this horrible pain, that runs from the base of the left side of my neck behind my hear up through my temple and out to my forehead, if I put my head down, or lie down it only gets worse.....sorry this is so long but I like I said I am going nuts here...I have gone from smoking 1 pack a day to smoking like two, my teeth even feel tight, and I am extremely noise sensitive...like I said I am sorry this is so long...any help would be appreciated
Doctor's Answer

by CCF Neuro[P] MD, RPS, Feb 03, 2001 12:00AM
Dear Lisa:



I am sorry to hear about your headache.  It is difficult to diagnose over the internet.  Do you have any associated eye conjunctival injection (red eye), tearing in the eye on the side of the headache, nasal congestion, running nose, lid ptosis, or eyelid edema on the side of the headache?  If so, you might have what we call hemicrania continua.  These types of headaches have these symptoms along with a terrible unilateral headache.  Some respond to indomethacin while others require a nerve block.  I would try and see a headache specialist and find out if you might have hemicrania continua.



Sincerely,



CCF Neuro MD
Member Comments (3)

by CCaldwell, Feb 03, 2001 12:00AM
To CCF Neuro,

  What is hemicrania continua?

by metal_king, Mar 07, 2001 12:00AM
To: Betty Powell
Im sorry for your pain ive had almost the same things all my problems are on the left side to. its been about 3 yrs and some things have gotten  alittle better i watch what i eat  and how i move my neck. ive tried alot of pain reliefe medicine and i still have pain constant to this day.I still get pain in left ear , left jaw, pain in left eye, and teeth sometimes being pressed together or pressure. my left side of head hurts or feels pain when you touch. left temple pain all the time. I think most of my problems started after dental work. when i did any bending over or driving in car made my problems worse when there was alot of bumping. that problem slowly gets better. If youd like to email me and ask me any questions. ARE your problems getting any better? have you found a docter with answers? metal_king***@****.  thanks jeff.
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