Concussion how long do headaches last

Most head injuries are not serious, but you should get medical help if you or your child have any symptoms after a head injury. You might have concussion temporary brain injury that can last a few weeks.

You or your child could have concussion. Symptoms usually start within 24 hours, but sometimes may not appear for up to 3 weeks. If you're not sure what to do, call or get help from online. Clearly, they are a common symptom of a concussion, but they can develop into a more serious diagnosis, such as post-traumatic headache which is defined as persistent headache or migraine for at least 3 months or post-concussion syndrome which includes other symptoms such as dizziness and photophobia.

These include:. Surprisingly, there is evidence that the severity of concussive injury has an inverse correlation to the development of chronic headaches. There is also likely a compounding effect of multiple concussions on headaches and related pain.

A analysis showed that 2 or more head injuries can lead to more frequent and severe headache and migraine attacks as well as total post-concussion symptoms. It is important to distinguish between the headaches that arise immediately after an injury and those that persist for weeks and months after the concussion. Generally, immediate head pain can manifest within a few hours or days after hitting your head and resolve itself shortly after with proper rest and treatment. However, post concussion headaches and migraines begin within 7 days of the injury and generally last for at least 3 to 6 months.

It has even been suggested that nearly a quarter of all headaches after a concussion persist for a year or more. Get diagnosed As noted previously, misdiagnosis and treatment can delay recovery time. Make sure you rule out other serious complications as well as emotional symptoms such as depression or anxiety that can also be part of post-concussion syndrome. In addition, as most post-concussion headaches are probable migraine or tension-type headache, medications and treatment regimens for those disorders may prove effective—such as triptans and topiramate.

Avoid medication overuse There is a litany of evidence that shows opioids and narcotic-based drugs lead to worsening outcomes for post-traumatic or concussion headache patients. If you need to take a mild pain reliever, it is recommended that you use acetaminophen and avoid ibuprofen or aspirin because they can cause bleeding. If you are still feeling the effects of the concussion, then it is recommended to continue to take it easy, limit screen time, and minimize the amount of mental focus.

However, if you are starting to feel better, then you can gradually work on adding activities to your day. When you notice symptoms coming back, you may need to take a break or try something less demanding.

At this point you will still need to avoid activities that could reinjure your head, even if you are feeling better. At the one week mark, you should be mostly feeling like your usual self.

At this time, you can generally return to your normal routine, unless directed otherwise by your doctor. Most concussions are healed within a week. However, if you start to experience symptoms again or if you are still experiencing symptoms after 10 days, you should contact your doctor to determine the cause. You should also talk with your doctor about returning to sports or other activities that could cause another head injury. In some cases, you may need to wait about weeks before resuming these activities to ensure you do not get a second head injury.