head ache woth vomiiting sensation

[asokan1966]

my wife is 37 years old and she is suffering from head ache and vomitting sensation for the last 3 weeks ,she is getting this in the evening time mostly and she is a maths teacher in job.
doctor has given some medicine for stress and its not working ,can some one help.
should i do scanning of head.?

[asokan1966]

hi,
thanks for your reply,
i went to a doctor yester day evening  , he has suggested to go for brain scanning , and ecg for the head i hope.
he is also doubting whether it can be migrain head ache  and he suggested to go for the above test just to make sure becuase of the 1 sec balck out.
i have to meet him again after i get these test.
g.asokan.

[marileew]

Hi asokan1966,

I am sorry to hear that your wife has been having these headaches. I hope that these headaches go away soon so that she can feel better soon.

I am glad to hear that your wife has already seen a doctor about this, as seeing a doctor is important, especially when a headache does not go away with home treatment or when vomiting is involved.

There are two general categories of headaches: Primary Headaches (also called idiopathic headaches) and Secondary Headaches (also called symptomatic headaches).

A Primary Headache is a headache that is not caused by an underlying disease. In a Primary Headache, the headache is the disease itself. Examples of Primary Headaches are: migraine, tension-type and cluster headaches. When you have a Primary Headache, nothing is wrong other than the headache, and so what is needed is treatment for the headache.

In a Secondary Headache, the headache is a symptom of an underlying disease, illness or injury. Examples of Secondary Headaches are: headaches caused by trauma to the head, headaches caused by infection or headaches caused by medications. Sinusitis-related headaches are a common type of Secondary Headache. A more serious type of secondary headache would be one caused by a life-threatening infection such as meningitis.

In order to treat secondary headaches, it is important for a doctor to diagnose the underlying disease, illness or injury that is causing the headache. Then it is important to cure, treat or manage the underlying disease, illness or injury that is causing the headache.

In your wife's case, the headache she is experiencing could be either a Primary Headache or a Secondary Headache, only a doctor could know for sure.

If it was a Primary Headache, then I would guess Migraine due to the vomiting. A common symptom of Migraine is vomiting.

In order to treat Migraine, acute migraine medications should be used. The first line treatment for acute migraine headaches are triptans. There are currently seven triptans on the market, plus one triptan that is also mixed with an NSAID called Naproxen. I believe that fast acting triptans are the best in most situations because they work the fastest. Fast acting triptans come in orally disintegrating tablets or nasal sprays. I personally use Zomig Nasal Spray and find it works extremely well. I also have found great success with Maxalt-MLTs. Although, everyone is different and all of the triptans on the market have been proven effective in clinical trials, so please discuss with your doctor which triptan would be the most appropriate in your situation.

Other acute Migraine medications include analgesics and antiemetics. An analgesic that is often prescribed for migraine headaches is Naproxen. It is often advised that over-the-counter analgesics should be avoided since they are usually not very effective and can cause rebound headaches. So instead of treating a migraine headache with an over-the-counter analgesic, please talk to your doctor about prescription for a suitable migraine medication first.

Antiemetics are another option that are particularly useful if vomiting is involved as antiemetics will stop nausea and vomiting. Metoclopramide is a good medication to discuss with your doctor because not only does it stop the nausea and vomiting associated with migraine headaches, but it will also help to stop the pain associated with migraine headaches.

If your wife's headache was a Secondary Headache, then my guess is that it could be caused by an infection since vomiting is involved... a blood test could rule out infection. If she gets a fever at all, make sure to take her back to the doctor, as vomiting, fever and headache all could imply an infection. There could be many other causes if it was a Secondary Headache as well, but only a doctor would know this. Your wife's doctor should have ruled out Secondary Headache when she first saw him, although if her symptoms change at all or get worse, then take her back to her doctor.

I hope that information is helpful. Let us know how your wife is. Keep in touch. I hope that she feels better soon!

- marilee