Helping children get through headache

Dear Dr. Donya,

I just read your article on children and headaches. My six- year-old daughter has been having headaches for several months. However, I had associated them with seasonal allergies and kept giving her allergy medicine. Within the last few weeks I have had her evaluated by the pediatrician and she has undergone a CT scan (which came back normal). We also went and got eye glasses. She will wake up in the morning or the middle of the night with severe headaches. She has been diagnosed with migraines and been given a prescription.

My concern is that they are more severe and occurring more frequently than before, or maybe I just never paid them any attention.

What can I do to help my child through this? The pain is always in her forehead. She gets a stiff neck and her tummy hurts and she sometimes feels sick in her stomach, but without vomiting. Any advice? I am in the military and, you know, you never see the same physician twice.

-- Deanne

Dear Deanne,

Thank you for your question. From your information, I don't think it's a migraine problem. Her symptoms suggest an intracranial lesion but her CT scan is negative, which confirms that she has no serious problems with her brain.

I am now thinking about an extracranial lesion such as sinusitis, which sometimes causes severe headaches, especially in the forehead.

Another concern is her overall sense of well-being. Is she depressed? Are there any problems at home or school? Please let me know about her progress. I am not happy to hear that she has a stiff neck - ask her doctor to check it. If her symptoms persist, I recommend going back to see her doctor or neurologist.

-- Dr. Donya