Homoeopathic Management In The Treatment Of Primary Headache In Children - homeopathy360

Homoeopathic Management In The Treatment Of Primary Headache In Children

Author:

Dr Kappally Swetha
MD- Part 11
Department of Pediatrics
Government Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital
Basaveshvaranagar, Bengaluru-79

ABSTRACT:
Headache is one of the most common disorders among children and adolescents. In 2004 it was reported that one third of the 7 yr old and half of 15 yr old children in India is having at least one episode, thereby documenting for the first time, the high prevalence of headache in children1. Headache in Pediatric population is under diagnosed and undertreated, despite a high prevalence of headache disorder in children and adolescents. Recurrent headache is affecting the significant proportion of children and this is found to be one of the major causes of absenteeism, this adversely affect their school performances and affects the child quality of life. This article is an attempt to understand the most common types of primary headache in children and its homoeopathic management
OBJECTIVES:
1.To understand common types of primary headache in children.
2.To understand the homoeopathic management of primary headache in children.
KEYWORDS: Primary headache, homoeopathy, children, migraine, tension type headache.
INTRODUCTION:
Primary headaches are headaches that are unaccompanied by any structural, metabolic or any other lesion in the body in general and brain in particular. most recurrent headache are proven to be the subtype of primary headache, tension type headaches and migraine being the most frequent types among children
Childhood and adolescence is the period where there is marked changes like rapid growth, emotional maturation , hormonal changes etc which may influence the expression of primary headache disorder in children with a predisposition . A number of intrinsic or extrinsic factors can trigger a migraine attack. the important triggers are stress, weather change, fatigue, sleeplessness, hunger and menstruation. fasting has also been reported commonly as a trigger in Indian patients. In Indian children stress both physical and emotional and lack of sleep are the most common triggers1.
A study conducted in twelve countries worldwide on children aged 5 to 15yrs with migraine has shown significant decrease in frequency severity and duration of migraine using homoeopathic medicine. The most commonly used medicines were Belladona, Ignatia, Iris versicolor, Kali phos and Gelsemium.
Migraine is a common disabling primary headache disorder.in the global burden of disease study 2010, it was ranked as the third most prevalent disorder in the world.characterised by periodic, throbbing, pulsating and usually one sided with sensitive to light and sound. nausea and vomiting also occur. Migraine has two major types1. migrain with aura is present with disturbance of nervous function, most often visual. 2.migraine without aura is characterised by a sudden onset of hemicranial or less often by global headache with or without nausea and vomiting.
Tension headache is characterised by dull, throbbing aching sensation all over the head. tenderness or sensitivity around the neck, forehead, scalp or shoulder muscle also might occur3.
Homoeopathic treatment is based on the concept of individualization, where the man is treated as whole, aphorism 5 of the 6th edition of Organon of medicine tells about the physical constitution ,mental character, occupational factors, lifestyle habits, age, social and domestic relationship which are all important in prescribing a constitutional remedy . and in those cases where there are very few symptoms , specific treatment can be applied as quoted in aphorism 153 of 6th edition of Organon of medicine, where most striking, singular, uncommon and peculiar characteristic signs and symptoms of the individual is considered.

ICHD-3rd (beta version) Diagnostic Criteria for headache disorder.
Ι) Migraine without aura
A. At least five attacks fulfilling criteria B–D

B. Attacks lasting 2–72 h (untreated or successfully treated)

C. Two of the following characteristics:
1. Migraine headache commonly is bilateral; occipital headache in children is rare
2. Pulsating quality
3. Moderate to severe intensity
4. Aggravated by, or causing avoidance of, routine physical activity

D. At least one of the following associated symptoms:
1. Nausea and/or vomiting
2. Photophobia and Phonophobia (photophobia may be inferred from behavior in young children)
Subtypes: Episodic (3 mo)

ΙΙ) Migraine with aura
A. At least two attacks fulfilling criteria B and C

B. One or more of the following fully reversible aura
Symptoms:
1. Visual (In children and adolescents, less typical bilateral visual symptoms occur that may represent an aura)
2. Sensory
3. Speech and/or language
4. Motor
5. Brainstem
6. Retinal

C. At least two of the following four characteristics:
1. At least one aura symptom spreads gradually
Over _5 minutes, and/or two or more symptoms
Occur in succession
2. Each individual aura symptom lasts 5-60 minutes1
3. At least one aura symptom is unilateral2
4. The aura is accompanied, or followed within 60
Minutes, by headache

D. Not better accounted for by another ICHD-3 diagnosis,
and Transient Ischaemic attack has been excluded.

ΙΙΙ) Tension-type headache
A. At least 10 episodes occurring on <1 day/mo on average(12 days/y) and fulfilling criteria B–D

B. Headache lasting 30 min to 7 days

C. Two of the following characteristics:
1. Bilateral location
2. Pressing/tightening (nonpulsating) quality
3. Mild to moderate intensity
4. Not aggravated by routine activity

D. At least one of the following associated symptoms:
1. No nausea or vomiting
2. Photophobia or Phonophobia

Subtypes
1. Episodic
May occur with or without Pericranial muscle tenderness
1. Infrequent
At least 10 episodes occurring on <1 day/mo on average(<12 days/y) and fulfilling criteria BD
2. Frequent
At least 10 episodes occurring on ≥1 but 3 mo.

HOMOEOPATHIC REMEDIES FOR PRIMARY HEADACHE IN CHILDREN

A) NAT MUR

Blinding headache. as if thousand little hammers were knocking on the brain , in the morning on awakening, from sunrise to sunset
Anaemic headache of school girls
Chronic headache, semi lateral, congestive, with pale face
Nausea, vomiting, and periodical headache from eyestrain
Before attack , numbness and tingling in lips, tongue and nose relieved by sleep3,4

B) SPIGELIA
Pain beneath frontal eminence and temples, extending to eyes
Semilateral, involving left eye
Pain violent, throbbing, worse, making a false step
Pain as if a band around head3

C) SANGUINARIA CANADENSIS
Periodical sick headache, worse right side,sun headache
Pain begins in occiput, spreads upward, settles over eyes,especialy right
Veins and temples are distended
Pain better lying down and sleep
Pain in small spot over upper parietal bone
Pain in the back of head like a flash of lightning3

D)GLONOINUM
Throbbing headache
Head heavy but cannot lay it on pillow
Cannot bear any heat about head and face
Head feels enormously large ,as if skull were too small for brain
Sun headache, increases and decreases with the sun
Shocks in head synchronous with pulse3

E) BELLADONNA:
Head much throbbing and heat.
Pain fullness, especially in forehead, also occiput, and temples
Pain worse light, noise, jar, lying down and in afternoon
Better by pressure and semi erect posture
Boring of head into pillow, drawn backward and rolls from side to side
Headache worse on right side and when lying down3,4

F) CALC PHOS:

Headache worse near the region of sutures from change of weather.
Headache with abdominal flatulence.
Headache of school children3,4.

G) LAC DEFLORATUM:

Disease with faulty nutrition
Sick headache with intense throbbing
Nausea, vomiting, obstinate constipation
Worse noise, light, motion, on rising, during menses
Headache forehead to occiput
Better pressure and tight bandage
Migraine ceases at sunset
Persistent headache for years3,4

H) BRYONIA
Bursting spitting headache as if everything would be pressed out,as if hit by a hammer within
Worse from motion,stooping,opening eyes.
Frontal headache3

I) SILICEA:

Headache from fasting
Pain begins in occiput, and spreads over head and settles over eyes.
Chronic sick headache attended with nausea and vomiting
Headache worse from mental exertion , excessive study,noise ,motion,
Worse toward night ,cold air and better from pressure and heat3,4

F) J) PHOSPHORIC ACID:

Head heavy, confused.
Pain as if temples were crushed together
Worse shaking or noise
Crushing headache
Congestive headache in school girls from slight exertion of the mind and use of the eyes
Headache associated with mental weakness, brain fag 3,4

RUBRICS FOR PRIMARY HEADACHE FROM BOERICKE REPORTORY3:
HEAD-headache-character of pain-bursting,splitting
HEAD-headache-character of pain-constrictive band like,squeezing
HEAD-headache-character of pain-excruciating,violent.
HEAD-headache-character of pain-periodical
HEAD-headache-character of pain-pressing
HEAD-headache-character of pain-throbbing,beating,hammering,pulsating

RUBRICS FOR PRIMARY HEADACHE FROM PHATAK S.R,CONCINSE REPERTORY5.

HEAD-band and, constriction
HEAD- Pain, throbbing,pulsating
HEAD-Pain,bursting,distended
HEAD-Pain,hammering
HEAD-Pain,cutting,sharpshooting.
HEAD- school girls agg.

REFERENCE:

1. Piyush Gupta, PSN Menon,Siddarth Ramji, Rakesh Lodha.PG Textbook of Paediatrics. 1st/e. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical publishers(p) Ltd;2015:2176-2182.
2 .Danno K,Colas A,Masson JL,Bordet MF.Homoeopathic treatment of migraine in children;result of a prospective multicenter,observational study;J Altern Complement Med.2013 Feb;19(2):119-23.
3.William Boericke.Pocket manual of homoeopathic materia medica and repertory.low priced edition new delhi;Jain Publisher(p)ltd;2006.
4. James Tyler Kent.Lectures on materia medica.Revised edition.New Delhi:Jain Publisher(p)ltd;2006.
5.concise repertory of homoeopathic medicine by S.R.Phatak:New Delhi:Jain Publisher(p)ltd.

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About the author

Dr kappally swetha

Persuing post graduation in Paediatrics from government homeopathic medical college,bangalore