Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2026

Minimally Invasive Surgical Decompression of Occipital Nerves
Published on: September 13, 2024
Non-hypothalamic cluster headache: the role of the greater occipital nerve in cluster headache pathogenesis
1Michigan Head-Pain and Neurological Institute, 3120 Professional Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, USA. trozen@mhni.com
Abstract:
Cluster headache is marked by its circadian rhythmicity and the hypothalamus appears to have a significant influence over cluster pathogenesis. However, as not all cluster patients present in the same manner and not all respond to the same combination of medications, there is likely a nonhypothalamic form of cluster headache. A patient is presented who began to develop cluster headaches after receiving bilateral greater occipital nerve (GON) blockade. His headaches fit the IHS criteria for cluster headache but had some irregularities including frequent side shifting of pain, irregular duration and time of onset and the ability of the patient to sit completely still during a headache without any sense of agitation. This article will suggest that some forms of cluster headache are not primarily hypothalamic influenced and that the GON may play a significant role in cluster pathogenesis in some individuals.
Related Concept Videos
Cranial Nerves: Types Part I
Olfactory Nerve (Cranial Nerve I)
The olfactory nerve, or cranial nerve I, is unique as it is purely sensory and dedicated to the sense of smell. This nerve originates in the olfactory epithelium of the...
Cranial Part of Parasympathetic Division
The vagus nerve (cranial nerve X) alone accounts for approximately 75...
Increased Intracranial Pressure ll: Pathophysiology
Cranial Nerves: Types Part II
Facial Nerve (Cranial Nerve VII)
Cranial nerve VII, or the facial nerve,...
Nociception
Sympathetic Pathways: Sympathetic Chain Ganglia

