Vasodilation causes your veins to expand at least as I understand it.  For example; if you have a kink clog in a water hose it expands, much like a vein would I suspect. If you constrict the water flow for a hose / lessen blood flow through your veins like a Vasoconstrictor does for blood. Example; pure oxygen for blood; less water for a hose , less expansion.  I believe if you get rid of the kink / clog; call it what you will, you'll have no expansion of the vein against the nerve endings.  Just a theory.

Precisely why my doctor wanted to see an MRI and an MRA - to rule out the deadly stuff first. It seems that there are some deadly malady's that can mimic SOME Cluster Headache symptoms. The first thing that he wanted to look for were aneurisms - the "bulges" you describe in your water hose analogy.

However, there are many of us who feel that CH's are not simple vascular headaches caused by expanding blood vessels like Migraines are. That theory came strictly from "our" response to Migraine medications. More current thinking (by the researchers specializing in this) includes the idea that CH's are actually Neurological in nature and are far more complex - hence the radically difference pain response when compared to Migraines.

There has been enough research evidence supporting this to trigger radically different approaches to treatment of CH's. 

So..... why do Migraine meds like Triptans work for us? No one knows for sure, but the studies always seem to eventually loop back to Hypothalamus interaction with nerves.

If you suffer from these monsters, I don't have to explain the reason that you should spend every available minute (and some that aren't!) reading the information on this site.

Marc

Dr Goadsby said a month or so ago the CH has been determined to be a Central Nervous System event, not vascular.  It seems to start in the Hypothalamus, and remains a CNS event.

Dr McGeeny talking about Trex today at the CB conference said Trex has effect on the hypothalamus as well as on the vascular effect.

Jerry

Jerry,

I remember several members here taking big time flack for suggesting that was the case, not so long ago! Once the hypothalamus was shown to "activate" on PET scans during a hit, it made sense to me.

Marc

Whilst it has been shown that the hypathalamus is activated during a PET scan whilst a CH kicks off, it still doesn't prove that it is where it originates (from what I've read).

Mike NZ wrote on Sep 16^th, 2013 at 2:09am:

Whilst it has been shown that the hypathalamus is activated during a PET scan whilst a CH kicks off, it still doesn't prove that it is where it originates (from what I've read).

It originates in Hell. How it finds my hypothalamus I have no idea. Blessings. lance

wimsey1 wrote on Sep 16^th, 2013 at 9:02am:

Mike NZ wrote on Sep 16th, 2013 at 2:09am: Whilst it has been shown that the hypathalamus is activated during a PET scan whilst a CH kicks off, it still doesn't prove that it is where it originates (from what I've read). It originates in Hell. How it finds my hypothalamus I have no idea. Blessings. lance

Hmm.....finally a theory I can wrap my arms around! ;D

Joe

wimsey1 wrote on Sep 16^th, 2013 at 9:02am:

It originates in Hell. How it finds my hypothalamus I have no idea.

This.....

wimsey1 wrote on Sep 16^th, 2013 at 9:02am:

Mike NZ wrote on Sep 16th, 2013 at 2:09am: Whilst it has been shown that the hypathalamus is activated during a PET scan whilst a CH kicks off, it still doesn't prove that it is where it originates (from what I've read). It originates in Hell. How it finds my hypothalamus I have no idea. Blessings. lance

Best explanation I've heard for quite a while.