Clinical Cases

A Case of Tension Headache

Written by Prshantgouda Patil

Dr. Prashantgouda Patil shares a case of chronic tension headache in a woman of 70. Her sensitive nature, desire for company and craving for sweets were among the symptoms leading to the simillimum.

History of presenting complaint:

A seventy year old women presented with a headache that started 1.5 years ago and had gotten worse in the last 15 days. Headache (Homeopathy for Throbbing Headache) was a pulsating type of pain,     < afternoon,  < after food,  >sleeping

2) Generals weakness increased since 2 months

Soles burning increased since 2 months

Past history:  Known case of hypertension and diabetes mellitus past 20 years. Under allopathic treatment

Family history:     father – diabetes mellitus

Treatment history:   She took allopathic treatment for diabetes mellitus,  hypertension and tension headache.

Menstrual history: menarche at the age 14, menopause at age 59 (2007)

Obstetrics history:  G2 P2 L2 A0

Physical generals:

Appearance –   moderately built and moderately nourished

Appetite-reduced since the last few days

Thirst – 11 glasses a day

Cravings-sweets and fried food

Aversion- nil

Urine- 5 to 6 times / day

Bowels – 1/ day (sometimes hard )

Perspiration- all over body

Sleep-good

Dreams-unremembered

Thermals- chilly

General physical examination:

Moderately built and moderately nourished

Well oriented with time and place

No pallor, cyanosis, clubbing, icterus, oedema, or lymphadenopathy

Vitals:   BP 120/70 mmhg

Pulse rate 74b/min

Weight 60 kg

Local examination:

Tongue white coated

Frontal sinuses are tender

Life space investigation: patient hails from high socioeconomic family. She has 4 siblings, all married and settled. She studied up to TTC and started working as a teacher in the government school.

She married at the age 22 and it was an arranged marriage. Her husband was a bank manager at a Karnataka bank, they had a good family life and have two children. The second son is working at Banglore and the other son settled in   Canada. Both are well educated.

The patient is very much worried about her son. She is sad that they are not with her. She and her husband stay alone in the home. She does all the household work.  She complains that her son spends money without knowing the value of it. She is very sensitive and cries easily

As a person : extroverted, very talkative, likes company, gets angry easily.

Constitutional totality:

Mental generals                       physical generals           characteristic particulars

Desires company                    desires sweets                   pulsating type of pain

Sensitive                                  thermally chilly                 pain in B/L temples2

Weeping easily                       reduced appetite               <afternoon

Consolation amelioration                                                   weakness2

Talkative                                                                            burning soles2

Diagnosis of the disease:

Tension headache

Miasmatic diagnosis:

Psora, sycosis

Reportorial analysis:

Phosphorus was selected as based on constitutional symptoms

Rx (14/10/2019)

Phosphorus 200 (2pkts) H S weekly

Sac Lac for 2 weeks

Follow-up criteria:

  1. Appetite
  2. Thirst
  3. Perspiration
  4. Bladder habit
  5. Mental tension
  6. Pulsating headache
  7. Weakness
  8. Burning soles

Progress notes:

 (abbreviations)

<       – Aggravation

>       – Amelioration

+       – Present

D       – Decreased

G       – Good

S       – Same

R       – Regular

B       – Better

A       – Absent

Date Symptom changes Prescription
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Rx
28/10/19 G G B R D D B B 1. SL 4P (1P)HS Wkly

2. 3 gr tab 1-0-1 x 1month

9/12/19 G G D R A P B B 1. Phos 200 2P (1P)HS Weekly

2. 3 gr tab 1-0-1 x 2wks

13/1/2020 G G D R A B B A 1.SL 7P Alt HS

2. 3 gr tab x 2wks

Follow up January 2020 :  When I saw her at the end of the Jan 2020, she said she was overall feeling better and her strength had increased again.

Conclusion: A few doses of constitutional medicine relieved the patient’s symptoms of tension headache along with other altered physical generals.

About the author

Prshantgouda Patil

Dr. Prashantgouda Patil MD-I (2018-19 Batch) Dept of Organon of Medicine
Father Muller Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, University road, Derlakatte, Mangalore, India.

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