Chronic headaches, now CAT scan scheduled - any thoughts?

[BadlyDrawnGirl]

I am a 26 year old female who has been suffering from chronic (mainly unilateral) headaches since I was 21. These headaches developed almost spontaneously, over a period of a few months, back in the summer of 2004. Since then I have experienced at least one moderate to severe headache between once a month and (currently) once a week.

I am currently living in France, so taking advantage of the health system here, I visited my husband's old sports medicine doctor, who referred me for a CAT scan and bloodwork. My scan is scheduled for next Wednesday.

Back in 2004, I also saw a neurologist in New York, who initially diagnosed my headaches as migraines, mainly because they seem to occur primarily on the left side of my head. However, she was never able to identify any other migraine-type symptoms, or any triggers which might be causing these headaches (i.e. sensitivity to food, caffeine, no correlation with my menstrual cycle, switched birth control pill, etc). I was also put on triptans (specifically Imitrex) which had no effect. We have also mainly ruled out sinus problems, as antihistamines do not seem to help either.

Based on this, and the fact that recently my headaches have "expanded" to include stiffness and pain in my neck as well, my doctor ordered a scan of my neck as well. I was a competitive gymnast from age 4 and had a few incidents where I fell/landed on my head. I also suffer from moderate lordosis (curvature of the lumbar spine), which is also apparently common among former gymnasts, so he has suggested that perhaps the compression on the nerves in my spine due to this curvature may be affecting things further up my spinal column and into my head.

I suppose I'm just wondering if anyone has any other opinions about what could possibly be causing my headaches. I guess I'm a bit concerned that, if the CAT scan fails to show anything, I'll just be stuck with this pain forever with no forseeable cure. :(

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Thanks for writing to the forum!
There is a possibility that your headaches have origin at the upper cervical level due to nerve compression. Neck strain, spondylotic changes in cervical vertebrae, bone disease or bad posture should be looked into.
One side headache could be due to temporal arteritis. This causes pain while trying to chew. It could also be due to fluid or infection in internal ear. It could also be due to a temporomandibular joint disorder. I think you should discuss these possibilities with your doctor. It is difficult to comment beyond this without examining.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[BadlyDrawnGirl]

Hi again, I just wanted to add that I have also been on antidepressants (to see if they controlled the headaches) as well as beta blockers. The ADs had no effect, and the beta blockers actually put me in the hospital, as I normally have quite low blood pressure as it is.