Big hits are part of the allure of football. A typical defensive back in the NFL running at full tilt can exert 1,600 lbs. of tackling force. Unfortunately, many of these hits involve excessive forces on the head and brain. Protective equipment has come a long way, but head injuries remain a concern at every level of competitive football.
Cluster Headaches
Cluster headaches are an unusually severe form of headache that strikes with predictable regularity. The pain of a cluster headache often affects one side of the head or the area behind the eyes. The headaches come in groups called clusters that may last for months.
Doctors believe that irregularities in a gland called the hypothalamus may cause cluster headaches. The hypothalamus controls the body's biological clock, accounting for the strange regularity of individual headaches within a cluster episode. Most cluster headache sufferers are men with a family history of the condition. Both smoking and alcohol use are also significant risk factors.
Impact Forces in Football
NASA originally designed the foam that lines professional football pads for shuttle astronauts. The foam slows and absorbs energy from impacts which might otherwise be crippling. The hardest hits in the game produce forces 100 times the strength of gravity. These forces only occur for an instant, and are mostly absorbed by padding and the turf. Football helmets are also lined with energy-absorbing foam and custom-fitted to the athlete's head. The helmet is arguably the single most important element of a player's armor. A serious head injury can be career-ending.
Headaches and Football
A survey published in "Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise" revealed that about one in five football players reported experiencing a headache during their previous game. Headache may or may not be a symptom of concussion. Typically concussions include other side effects, such as dizziness or disorientation. In most of these cases, headaches were not indicative of concussion injuries. There's no specific link between the activity of football and cluster headaches, which are much more closely linked with genetics and lifestyle factors.
Treatment of Cluster Headaches
Cluster headaches have no cure, and over-the-counter medications are typically ineffective at easing the symptoms. The sudden onset of the condition makes cluster headaches especially difficult to treat. Pure oxygen offers fast relief for sufferers, though keeping a tank on hand may present an inconvenience and safety hazard. Several migraine headache drugs have also shown effectiveness with cluster headaches. Some of these drugs aim to control pain, while others work to prevent severe headaches before they begin.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Cluster Headaches
- "Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise"; Prevalence of Headaches in Football Players; R.E. Sallis, et al.; November 2000
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Heads Up: Concussion in Football
- "Popular Mechanics"; Football Physics: The Anatomy of a Hit; Matt Higgins; December 2009
