Headaches associated with COVID-19

Abstract

Headache is a common symptom of both the acute and post-COVID-19 periods which often persists for a long time. Headache is the leading symptom among all the neurological manifestations of COVID-19, and it also can be a severe deconditioning disorder in about one fifth of patients. A new type of headache may occur or an existing primary cephalal gia pattern may worsen in a patient with COVID-19. During the acute period of infection, cephalgia in most patients can be considered as a headache associated with acute viral infections. However, other forms such as a cough headache, exertional headache, etc. are often considered. In these cases, cephalgic manifestations correlate with other COVID-19 symptoms. The long-term persistent headaches, as one of the most frequent and persistent symptoms of the post-COVID syndrome, often occur according to the type of tension headaches and migraines and are significantly more often detect ed in people with a prior history of cephalalgia. The diversity of headache phenotypes in COVID-19 requires the involve ment of universal strategies for their management. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the most widely investigated and commonly used to relieve pain in clinical practice, as well as fever and other symptoms of infection. The long-term experience with the use of NSAIDs in clinical practice, the availability of clinical data and the results of special studies reveal the possibility of their usage in patients with COVID-19 and complaints of headaches. However, a thorough analysis of current records of their use in patients with COVID-19 is required for the effective and safe use of NSAIDs in this category of patients.