Headache proneness and mechanisms of motor conflict in psychiatric patients.

Autor: Malmo, Robert B., Wallerstein, Harvey, Shagass, Charles, MALMO, R B, WALLERSTEIN, H, SHAGASS, C
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Personality; Dec53, Vol. 22 Issue 2, p163-187, 25p
Abstrakt: Tensional Headache is a perplexing clinical problem with important psychological aspects which have not been adequately explored. The present study was designed to attack this problem with the methods of experimental psychology. Previous electromyographic (EMG) studies have demonstrated that with favorable response to treatment there is, in some cases, a corresponding reduction in level of muscle potentials from certain muscles of the head and neck. In these studies, gradually rising muscle potentials from related muscles were found to accompany the development and onset of head discomfort. This close relationship between excessive muscular contraction and proneness to headache was shown in another way by the method of group comparison. Headache-prone patients were compared with nonheadache-prone patients. All were undergoing psychiatric treatment. Headache proneness was found associated with increased muscle potentials from the neck during stimulation, but not with high heart rate, high heart-rate variability, or respiratory deviation.
Databáze: Complementary Index