Duration of headache | Headache with a cold

Duration of headache

Headaches, if they occur as a symptom of sinusitis or as a reaction to the increased release of messenger substances as part of the defence reaction of the body’s own immune system, subside in the course of the illness, as do other cold symptoms. On average, a cold lasts one to two weeks, but this cannot be fixed in a generalized way, as it can vary from person to person. If the headache over the cold persists, a doctor should be consulted promptly. Independent of a flu-like infection, headaches can have numerous other causes, including more dangerous and life-threatening ones, so that a clarification is definitely advisable.

Different types of headaches

Forehead headaches in the case of a cold are often signs of sinusitis, especially of the frontal sinuses. If these are clogged, the pressure increases here, which we perceive as headache. This is characterized by an increase in pain when bending forward or down and when pressing.

Possible other causes of forehead headaches can also be tension, especially in the neck muscles.These are also not uncommon in the context of a cold, especially when the cold forces you to spend most of the day in bed. But migraine can also trigger a headache, which can also concentrate in the forehead region. Migraine can, but does not have to be triggered by a flu-like infection.

In addition, stress, overwork and lack of sleep can easily trigger a headache centered in the forehead, although all three can also be caused by a cold. If the forehead headache persists over the other cold symptoms or becomes noticeable strong to unbearable, a physician should be visited promptly, since behind them always also by far more dangerous causes can be. Occipital headaches are rather untypical in the context of a cold.

The most common and at the same time most harmless cause of occipital headache is acute or chronic neck muscle tension. Often affected are patients who perform a predominantly sedentary and/or computer-related activity, suffer from stress and lack of exercise. Other causes that can also lead to occipital headaches are much rarer but also much more dangerous: if they occur together with dizziness, nausea, vomiting, neck stiffness or even clouding of consciousness, a doctor should be consulted as soon as possible. Dangerous causes include meningitis, cerebral haemorrhages, cerebrovascular occlusions or even slipped discs in the cervical spine.