Skin temperature is affected primarily by blood flow. Research scientists have found that thermograms of headache patients show strikingly different heat patterns from those of people who never or rarely get headaches. A physician analyzes the results of all these diagnostic tests along with a patient's medical history in order to arrive at a diagnosis. Muscle contraction headaches appear to involve the tightening or tensing of facial and neck muscles. Traction and inflammatory headaches are symptoms of other disorders, ranging from stroke to sinus infection.
Some people have more than one type of headache.
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke of The National Institutes of Health. NIH Publication No. Hope Through Research . Last updated August 31, 1999. All rights reserved.