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What Causes Pain In Posterior Part Of Head During Sleep?
Posted on
Tue, 1 Dec 2015
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Tue, 1 Dec 2015
Answered on
Tue, 22 Dec 2015
Last reviewed on
Question : I often get a headache in back of my head during sleep , when I wake up it stays with me for hours sometimes all day even after taking migraine pills . Why in back of my head ? Never in front or sides . Just above my neck in back of my head
Brief Answer:
Check blood pressure, cervicogenic headache.
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understand your concern.
One cause of pain in that location could be high blood pressure which typically causes pain in the posterior part of the head. So if you haven't checked your blood pressure lately I suggest to have some measurement for the next few days.
Another common cause for pain in that location would be osteoarthritis of the neck spine which causes pain typically in the neck and the posterior part of the head. An x-ray would be a good simple initial exam for changes in the upper neck vertebrae.
Other possible cause might be tension type headache, a headache frequently related to stress and anxiety, which may predominate in the back of the head due to increased tension of neck and posterior scalp muscles.
Those are some of the most probable causes of such headaches. I remain at your disposal for other questions, but possibly including some more detail on when the symptoms begun, their frequency, other accompanying symptoms etc.
Check blood pressure, cervicogenic headache.
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understand your concern.
One cause of pain in that location could be high blood pressure which typically causes pain in the posterior part of the head. So if you haven't checked your blood pressure lately I suggest to have some measurement for the next few days.
Another common cause for pain in that location would be osteoarthritis of the neck spine which causes pain typically in the neck and the posterior part of the head. An x-ray would be a good simple initial exam for changes in the upper neck vertebrae.
Other possible cause might be tension type headache, a headache frequently related to stress and anxiety, which may predominate in the back of the head due to increased tension of neck and posterior scalp muscles.
Those are some of the most probable causes of such headaches. I remain at your disposal for other questions, but possibly including some more detail on when the symptoms begun, their frequency, other accompanying symptoms etc.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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