Introduction
Almost everyone suffers from headaches more or less frequently in their lives. As with all headaches, including headaches in the back of the head, the causes are usually harmless and are rarely due to a dangerous or malignant disease.
Causes
Tension in the neck or jaw muscles is considered the most common cause of pain in the back of the head and also of headaches in general. While jaw tension is usually caused by teeth grinding at night, the reasons for neck tension are most likely to be one-sided strain on the back and neck or a lack of movement due to predominantly sedentary occupational activity. But why does neck tension lead to headaches at all?
This mechanism is due to the fact that tension stimulates nerve tracts that transmit pain signals to the brain. The most effective remedy for tension in the jaw muscles is the nightly application of a bite splint. Neck tension is best treated by movement, relaxation exercises and heat applications.
In principle, psychologically triggered pain or other complaints can occur in practically any part of the body. The head and especially the back of the head is particularly often affected. Psychosomatic means that complaints are triggered by psychological stress.
If the pain persists over a longer period of several weeks, one should consult a family doctor or a neurologist. He or she can discuss whether the pain is intensified in certain situations and whether there are other symptoms that could be a specific cause of pain. Another possible cause of pain in the back of the head is cervical spine syndrome (cervicocephalgia).
This is pain originating in the cervical spine and radiating to the head. It is also possible that the pain radiates into the jaw or face. In addition, vision, hearing or swallowing difficulties may occur less frequently.
However, cervicocephalgia is not a diagnosis, but merely a description of symptoms. It can be caused by herniated discs of the cervical spine, deforming diseases of the spine such as spondylosis, spondylarthrosis, unconvertebral arthrosis or a muscle atrophy of the neck muscles. A neurinoma of the supplying nerves, a benign tumor of the cells that surround the nerve processes as medullary sheaths, is also conceivable.
Another possible cause of occipital pain is so-called occipital neuralgia, which is sometimes also referred to as occipital syndrome. The occipital lobe is the rear part of the cerebrum. In this disease, the pain is therefore actually limited to the back of the head. It is caused by chronic nerve pain, which manifests itself in mainly unilateral pain at the back of the head and upper neck. The pain can also follow the course of the affected nerve and thus radiate towards the eye.
