Overview of Headaches in Children

Headaches in children are not usually a cause for concern and are commonly caused by ordinary short-term illnesses, such as a cold or flu. They can be more common in boys prior to puberty and in girls after puberty (due to hormonal changes associated with the menstrual cycle).

Let's gain a basic understanding of headaches in children, so you can hopefully feel at ease, but also know when to contact your child's healthcare provider.

Can Headaches in Children Be a Sign of Something Serious?

Although parents tend to worry about the possibility that a headache indicates something serious, like a brain tumor, the vast majority of headaches are not due to a serious underlying condition. In fact, the most common cause of headaches in children is the onset of an ordinary short-term illness, such as a cold or flu.

Kinds of Headaches Children Have

There are two major categories of headaches in children:

• Primary Headaches: Headaches including migraine, tension headache, and the less common, cluster headache.
• Secondary Headaches: Headaches that occur as a byproduct of some other condition such as a viral illness or sinus, ear, or eye infection, meningitis, head injury, brain tumor, stress, anxiety, depression, or a side effect of some medications.

Migraines

Migraines tend to run in the family. In fact, the majority of children who experience migraine headaches without aura have family members who share the condition.

As is true for adults, such children may find that their migraines are triggered by a variety of things, such as:

• Hunger
• Dehydration
• Fatigue
• Disruption of normal sleep patterns
• Overactivity
• Stress and anxiety
• Certain medications
• Certain foods

Compared to adults, in children, migraines tend to be much shorter in duration, sometimes lasting as little as two hours.

The symptoms of migraine headaches in children may also include:

• Presence of visual aura (a period of time just prior to the head pain during which the child may notice odd flashes of light or color)
• Throbbing or pounding headache on both sides of the head (a one-sided headache is more common in adults)
• A headache in the forehead or temples
• Increased pain with physical activity
• Sensitivity to light or sound, or both—children may have a difficult time articulating this
• Sensitivity to smell
• Autonomic symptoms (e.g., runny nose or tearing eyes)
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Lightheadedness
• Difficulty thinking

Tension Headaches

Children with tension headaches describe their pain as feeling like a tight, squeezing band of pain around their head, and their headaches are often accompanied by tight or painful muscles in the neck and shoulders.

Tension headaches may occur when a child is under stress or having a hard time handling anxiety or an emotional situation. The length of such headaches can vary widely, from 30 minutes or less, to several days.

Cluster Headaches

Although very uncommon in children, cluster headaches may seriously interfere with a child's ability to function normally. These headaches feel like a severe, sharp, piercing pain on one side of the head. Even though these headaches are extremely painful, they are typically brief and usually gone in about three hours.

When Your Child Should See a Healthcare Provider

If your son or daughter has a headache that's clearly associated with something like a cold or ear infection, you don't need to rush your child to the healthcare provider's office. But if he or she has regular bouts of headaches that aren't associated with a mild illness, you should call the child's healthcare provider to see whether an evaluation is needed.

Make an immediate appointment if the headaches begin after your child has experienced a head injury or if the headaches are:

• Severely disabling
• Described by your child as the "worst headache" of his or her life
• Increasing in frequency
• Occurring monthly or more often
• Causing your child to wake up from sleep, or your child wakes up with a headache

Or accompanied by:

• Vomiting
• Changes in vision
  
• Fever, stiff neck, or neck pain
• Lethargy
• Weakness or numbness
• Any other odd or worrisome symptoms, including mood or personality changes, weakness, difficulty walking or talking, memory problems, loss of bowel or bladder control, or confusion

How to Help Your Child Avoid Headaches

The simplest steps to avoiding a headache are the most important. Make sure your daughter or son eats regularly, stays hydrated, and gets sufficient sleep. Try to identify sources of stress in your child's life at home or at school, and help to alleviate them.

If your child gets regular headaches, consider keeping a headache diary. This is a place where you and/or your child should record in some detail what happened on a headache day as a way of spotting the "triggers" that might be responsible for bringing on the headaches.

Use the diary to write down information about each headache, such as the date it occurred, how long it lasted, and how severe it was. Also, include information about what was happening with your child that day, including details about meals, sleep, exercise, stress, any unusual activities, or exposures to smells or chemicals.

Once you've identified factors that might be involved in triggering your child's headaches, you can try to eliminate those triggers from your child's life or find strategies that help your child cope with their unique triggers.

Medications

Over-the-counter analgesics, like Tylenol (acetaminophen) and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen, can be used to relieve headache pain. But remember that you should never give aspirin or aspirin-containing preparations to children or teenagers for viral infections (with or without fever) because it increases their risk for a serious illness called Reye's syndrome.

It's important to note that migraines can vary considerably from child to child and as a child grows. Moreover, some children's headaches are more resistant to treatment through medications. Depending on your son or daughter's age and whether the headaches are resistant, your healthcare provider may prescribe a stronger prescription medication called a triptan, such as the Imitrex (sumatriptan) nasal spray. Moreover, Sumatriptan plus naproxen sodium (called Treximet) may be effective in treating migraines in adolescents.

If your child has very frequent migraine episodes, you may want to inquire whether he or she might benefit from a daily preventive medication like Topamax (topirimate).

Other Options

If your son or daughter seems to have a high level of stress, or if you feel that anxiety is contributing to their headaches, consider looking into ways to help your child learn to relax. Biofeedback and meditation can help your child cope with stress at school. Cognitive behavior therapy may help teach your child how to replace negative, stressful thoughts and behavioral patterns with more positive ones.

A Word From Verywell

It is important to identify the underlying cause of your child's headaches whether they are due to an underlying illness or a primary headache syndrome. This can help to guide treatment.