Fibrotic change

Fibrotic change in the head muscles and connective tissue of the scalp is a very common source of acute and chronic head pain and dysfunction. Fibrotic change is an abnormal structure within a muscle and/or connective tissue. It is most often caused by muscle overuse.

Fibrotic change is characterised by a build-up of abnormally formed collagen, which forms nodules or lumps within the muscle and/or connective tissue. These are commonly referred to as "knots". Due to in-growth of different types of sensory nerves and the production of a cocktail of "pain" chemicals within the formations, fibrotic change can trigger a wide variety of symptoms. These include intense sharp shooting, burning and gnawing pain, dull ache, as well as tingling and numbness.

Fibrotic change in the tissues of the scalp is often associated with difficulty concentrating, foggy or cloudy thinking and increased irritability. Detailed research has found that  pain in the head tissues affects blood flow through the major arteries of the brain and irritation of the brains' membranes, because the nerves that innervate these tissues  extend through the skull to innervate scalp tissue,which partly explains such cognitive effects. It also provides an explanation of how head muscles can be a major contributor to migraine headaches.