Céphalées de tension

Tension-type headaches are heterogeneous entities. They are generally reported to occur in relation with emotional conflict and psychosocial stress, but the cause-effect relationship has not been clarified. During the last decade, progress in molecular neurobiology of pain has enhanced our knowledge about the mechanisms underlying chronic head pain. Central sensitization plays an important role in the pathophysiology of chronic tension-type headache. Nitric oxide (NO) itself seems to play an important role in the central sensitization. However, these improvements have not modified the current pharmacotherapy of tension-type headache, which includes simple analgesics and NSAIDs for the episodic form, and the tricyclic antidepressant amitriptyline for the chronic form.