Is there any Correlation Between Headache and Eye Problems?

Maximum people nowadays are suffering from constant headaches with different intensities and from different sources. They are very common in children and adults who have prolonged exposure to digital screens such as laptops, desktops, mobile phones, etc. Headaches are deliberate, leading to bad quality of life. One major issue for headaches is eye problems which can lead to vision problems in the long run. Some of the basic types of headaches with their causes and various types of eye problems are discussed below-

Different types of headaches

Based on the source of the cause, there are various types of headaches that today’s generation is facing on a large scale which include-

• Migraines - It is a chronic type of headache that has various triggers such as hormones, and sleep problems and depends on the type of diet you consume.
• Tension - Headache from tension occurs usually due to tight muscles of the neck, face, or shoulders.
• Cluster - Headache caused by cluster mainly occurs in cylindrical pain with intense pain on one side of the head. The intense pain of this type of headache lasts for around a few minutes to an extent of a few hours and can end in just one day or can trouble you for even weeks.
• Sinus - Headaches due to sinus occur due to a sinus infection or sinus congestion.

Not just these, headaches can be due to overdoing certain medications, dehydration, and majorly due to eye strains.

Eye strain

With the digital world and digital usage taking a toll on our lives, headaches due to eye problems are major because of eye strain. Any activity which leads to extended hours in front of digital devices or prolonged focus on the eyes leads to eye strains which result in headaches subsequently. Eye strains in general are very uncomfortable symptoms of headaches. Apart from eye strain, other eye problems that lead to headaches are injury to the eye, dry eyes, eye infection, degenerative eye disease, or uncorrected vision problems like near-sightedness and farsightedness

The major cause of eye strain or eye problems is spending too much time in front of computer screens and the general symptoms of eye strain are-

• Headaches
• Light sensitivity
• Eyes watering
• Blurred vision
• Tired eyes
• Itching in the eye
• Shoulder and neck pain
• Troubles with concentration

Visual impacted Migraines or Ocular Migraines

Ocular migraines lead to visual disturbances which may or may not lead to headaches. It is common to have ocular migraines but there is a genetic link also involved with it which means if any of your parents have this condition then you are most likely to inherit it from your parents with an increased risk.

Basic symptoms of Ocular migraines are-

• Severe pain in the eyes
• Headaches
• Experiencing flashy lights
• Blind spots hindering your vision

Glaucoma

Glaucoma increases the pressure in the eye which leads to damage to the optic nerve. This in return leads to vision loss as the optic nerve carries the information to be sent to the brain. The increased pressure on the eye causes damage to the optic nerve which leads to severe headache, blurry vision, vomiting, and watery eyes. There is no cure for glaucoma but by taking proper preventive measures, it can be slowed down. So, it is advisable to consult a professional for a thorough examination of the eyes to prevent any further adverse effects.

There are other eye disorders as well which start with a headache or have a headache as a symptom which can lead to major vision issues. Let’s understand the eye examination needed to detect the solution to the headaches and eye disorders along with the preventive measures.

Get the treatment for your uncomfortable headache and other eye-related problems

At The Sight Avenue hospital, we provide the best treatment for headaches and different eye problems with the best Ophthalmologists in Delhi along with their experienced team. Computer vision syndrome or digital eye strain can be diagnosed via comprehensive eye examination, where different aspects of the patient’s life are accessed. Some areas covered in the detailed eye examination are as follows-

• Patient medical history to get the information about any previous disease he had suffered or is suffering currently to understand the impact on the vision of the eye
• A vision examination is done to understand to what extent the vision of the eye is affected.
• Refractive analysis to get the lens power to correct any refractive error such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism.
• To view an object in real-time, the eyes should focus, move and work together so an examination is done to see the effectiveness of the eyes. This analysis will check for all problems that can create problems with eye efficiency or what is hindering the working of both eyes together.

The testing can be done with or without eye drops based on the focus area of the examination. The eye drops don't let the eye change its focus while the testing is done.

Preventive measures for headache and eye-related problems

The major factors associated with headache and eye-related problems are based on the computer screen and can be prevented or reduced by small changes such as lighting conditions, chair comfort, location of the material, the position of the screen with you along with the breaks in between work.

• Location of the digital screen

Most people have a habit of keeping the system very close to them and the eyes should bend to see the screen but ideally, the system should be placed around 4 to 5 inches below the eye level as measured from the center of the eyes and be 25- 28 inches away from the eye.

• Lighting

Place the system in such a way that there is no glare on the screen from windows or any bulb as it puts a lot of pressure on the eyes to focus. Replace your workstation bulbs with bulbs of less voltage to maintain the lighting as well as keep the visibility of the screen clear.

• Seating position

The chair should be comfortable to sit in with proper rest for the body and the height of the chair should be adjusted to make the feet rest flat on the ground. The hands and wrists should be comfortably rested and the wrists shouldn’t be hanging on the keyboard which can cause tension in the wrists.

• Blinking of the eye

Frequent blinking of the eyes is very important to keep the surface of the eye moist preventing the dry eye problem so while working on the computer, frequent blinking should be practiced.

• 20-20-20 rule for regular breaks

Follow the 20-20-20 rule while spending a long time on the digital screen which means looking for 20 minutes at least 20 feet away after working for 20 minutes.

Regular eye check-ups and enhanced viewing habits can prevent and reduce any symptoms that can lead to headaches or eye strain. The Sight Avenue hospital has a complete team of experienced doctors having the expertise to carry out detailed eye examinations before they can lead to any major issue or impact the vision of the person. So, no symptoms should be avoided and if you or your loved ones are experiencing any such issue, consult the best eye specialist hospital in Delhi, The Sight Avenue today to progress towards the betterment of your eye conditions and perfect vision.