Headaches Associated with Head Trauma

Abstract

Abstract Post concussive headache (PCH) is a new headache that follows a blunt or open injury to the head or brain (Headache Classification Committee, 2004). Post concussion syndrome is a constellation of symptoms that may follow a mild to moderate closed head injury. Symptoms of post concussion syndrome include headache, depression, irritability, memory impairment, alcohol intolerance, dizziness or vertigo, attention and concentration difficulties, and loss of libido. Concussion, minor head injury, and minor traumatic brain injury are difficult to define, compared with moderate or severe injury, in which structural damage is evident. The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine defined minor traumatic brain injury as “a traumatically induced physiological disruption of brain function” with at least one of the following: (1) any period of loss of consciousness; (2) any memory loss for events just before or after the accident; (3) any alteration in mental state at the time of the accident; and (4) focal neurologic deficits that may or may not be transient (Packard, 1999).