What is meant by burning in the head?
Headaches can present themselves in different forms. Burning is one of them. This sensation is caused by nerve irritation (neuralgia), for example through inflammation or entrapment.
The brain substance itself does not contain any nerves. They are located on the meninges, blood vessels, cranial and spinal nerves and the skin. The pain can, however, also originate at another location and radiate to the head or be perceived there.
Typical is a lightning-like shooting in alternation with pain-free phases. There are many possible causes. Besides harmless triggers, it can also be a sign of serious illness. If the complaints persist or if further symptoms occur, it is advisable to search for the cause. As with headaches in general, however, the cause cannot always be found.
Causes
Burning can occur in all types of headache. It occurs in common tension headache, migraine and more rare forms such as cluster headache and trigeminal neuralgia. Cluster headache (Binge-Horton syndrome) is characterised by severe unilateral pain in the region of the eyes.
It is accompanied by reddening of the eyes, lacrimation, runny nose and sweating. The attacks usually occur at night and last between 15 and 180 minutes. Trigeminal neuralgia is a disease of a cranial nerve that runs through the face.
It leads to sudden, extremely strong pain attacks, mostly unilateral. If they last only a few seconds, up to 100 attacks per day are possible. Other causes can be: stress, depression, nerve entrapment near the spine, tension, a facial herpes zoster, high blood pressure, poor diet (insufficient fluid intake, large amounts of alcohol) as well as rarely but significantly: inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis) with mostly unilateral burning in the eye area, accompanied by visual disturbances.
Trigeminal neuralgia is a disease of a cranial nerve that runs through the face. It leads to lightning-like, extremely strong pain attacks, mostly one-sided. If they last only a few seconds, up to 100 attacks per day are possible.
Other causes can be: stress, depression, nerve entrapment near the spine, tension, a facial herpes zoster, high blood pressure, poor diet (insufficient fluid intake, large amounts of alcohol) as well as rarely but significantly: inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis) with mostly unilateral burning in the eye area, accompanied by visual disturbances. Other causes can be: stress, depression, nerve entrapment near the spine, tension, facial shingles (herpes zoster), high blood pressure, poor diet (insufficient fluid intake, large amounts of alcohol) and, rarely but significantly: inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis) with a burning sensation in the eye area, usually on one side, accompanied by visual disturbances. Pain is a sensory perception that is subject to complex processing by the nervous system.
This happens through the interaction of nerve cells via so-called neurotransmitters. Their release can be influenced by stress or mental illness and thus change the perception of pain. Otherwise unnoticed or hardly noticed physical stimuli can suddenly be perceived as painful, in this case burning.
In about one third of all multiple sclerosis patients, especially young women, an inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis) occurs at the beginning of the disease. This usually only occurs in one eye. Those affected complain of reduced visual acuity, failures, especially in the central visual field, colour sense disorders and movement-dependent pain behind the eye.
This inflammation of the optic nerve usually precedes other symptoms of multiple sclerosis and is therefore an important indication for early detection. Depression can be accompanied by physical complaints or even be the cause of them (larvae/somatised depression). In severe depression in particular, physical symptoms often occur in addition to reduced drive and depressed mood.
Pain without a recognisable physical cause is possible. There is a good chance that the physical symptoms will also disappear after appropriate treatment with psychotherapy and, if necessary, antidepressants. In larvae depression, pain is not an accompanying symptom, but rather an expression of the mental illness. However, this is not perceived by the patient, it is “hidden” so to speak. In any case, depression as a cause must be taken seriously and treated.
