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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffIce cream headache symptoms include:
- Sharp, stabbing pain in the forehead
- Pain that peaks about 30 to 60 seconds after it begins
- Pain that rarely lasts longer than five minutes
When to see a doctor
Because ice cream headaches go away on their own shortly after they start, there's no need to see a doctor.
References
- Headache: Hope through research. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/headache/detail_headache.htm. Accessed Oct. 14, 2011.
- Headache Classification Subcommittee of the International Headache Society. The international classification of headache disorders: 2nd edition. Cephalalgia. 2004;24(suppl):9.
- Fuh JL, et al. Ice-cream headache — A large survey of 8359 adolescents. Cephalalgia. 2003;23:977.
- Boes CJ, et al. Headache and other craniofacial pain. In: Bradley WG, et al. Neurology in Clinical Practice. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Elsevier; 2008:65.
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