Is Fatigue Linked to Headaches?

Check out this answer from Consensus:

The research consistently shows a strong link between fatigue and headaches, particularly migraines. Fatigue is highly prevalent among migraine sufferers and is often exacerbated by comorbid conditions like depression and anxiety. It significantly impacts the quality of life and can act as a trigger for headaches. Effective management of fatigue in migraine patients may require a combination of therapeutic interventions, including exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy.

Fatigue is a common symptom reported in various disorders, including headaches and migraines. This synthesis aims to explore the relationship between fatigue and headaches, particularly migraines, by analyzing data from multiple research studies.

Key Insights

  • High Prevalence of Fatigue in Migraine Patients:
    • Fatigue is highly prevalent among chronic migraine (CM) patients, with significant portions meeting criteria for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) .
    • Fatigue is more common and severe in chronic migraine patients compared to those with episodic migraines.
  • Correlation with Comorbidities:
    • Fatigue in migraine patients is often associated with other conditions such as depression, anxiety, and fibromyalgia .
    • Depression and anxiety significantly impact fatigue levels in migraine sufferers .
  • Impact on Quality of Life:
    • Fatigue significantly affects the quality of life in migraine patients, correlating with higher headache severity and disability scores .
    • Poor sleep quality and increased daytime sleepiness are common in migraine patients, contributing to fatigue .
  • Gender Differences:
    • Women with migraines report higher fatigue levels compared to men .
  • Fatigue as a Headache Trigger:
    • Fatigue is frequently cited as a trigger for headaches and migraines, indicating a bidirectional relationship .
  • Therapeutic Interventions:
    • Interventions such as graded aerobic exercise, cognitive behavioral therapy, and antidepressants are suggested to manage fatigue in migraine patients .

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Tony Dickenson has answered Near Certain

An expert from University College London in Neuroscience

Yes. Migraine appears to be a result of a clash between brain changes and chemical events in the membranes around the brain. When these coincide, a headache results. There are a number of triggers that participate in the altered processing within the brain and tiredness is one.

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Arne May has answered Uncertain

An expert from University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf in Neurology

This question cannot be answerd.

There are more that 200 headache types, grouped into primary and secondary headaches. Primary headaches are diseases where the headache is itself the disease (for example migraine) and secondary, where headache is just a symptom of another disease (for example a brain tumor).

Fatigue plays a role in migraine (interestingly very often before the actual headache starts and one of the premonitory symptoms is yawning). For the rest of the more than 200 headache types fatigue is not necessarily an inherent symptom. Also in heaches that usually come at nighttime (such as cluster headache and hypnic headache) fatigue is a consequence of the nightly attacks, not primarily linked to the disease as such.

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Antonio Russo has answered Near Certain

An expert from University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli in Neurology

The relationship between migraine and fatigue is bidirectional. Indeed, fatigue is a common symptom of many conditions including sleep disorders, fibromyalgia and depression. However, fatigue and lack of energy are also frequent complaints of people suffering from migraine. On the other hand, tiredness, poor-quality sleep, shift work, jet lag, strenuous exercise (if not used to it), altogether leading to the feeling of “fatigue”, may work as triggers for the ignition of a migraine attack. From a pathophysiologic point of view, with the term “trigger” we indicate a series of stimuli that may have an effect on a susceptible brain (i.e., the migraineous brain) and lead to a cascade of cellular and molecular brain changes resulting in an acute migraine attack.

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Fayyaz Ahmed has answered Near Certain

An expert from Hull York Medical School in Neurology

Headache can lead to fatigue and fatigue could lead to headache. Fatigue and headache are symptoms of migraine and can co-exist.

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Chanawee Hirunpattarasilp has answered Near Certain

An expert from HRH Princess Chulabhorn College of Medical Science in Neuroscience

Fatigue from stress or actual physical fatigue is one of the triggers for migraine and tension-type headache.

Is fatigue linked to headaches?

Anna Andreou has answered Near Certain

An expert from King’s College London in Neuroscience, Neurology

Both mental and physical fatigue are reported by many headache patients. The vast majority of chronic migraine patients report daily fatigue symptoms. Fatigue can also be a symptom of a migraine attack, before the actual headache begins and/or during the postdrome phase after the headache phase of an attack. Fatigue just before an attack has been also reported by 60% of cluster headache patients, while fatigue symptoms are present in nearly all cluster headache patients after an attack.