Many people will begin their quest for headache treatment with the optometrist or ophthalmologist. In fact, most eye pain in headaches does not result from an optical problem.

Optical problems can trigger or aggravate headache pain but are very seldom the underlying cause of the pain, or the pain centre. The muscles that control the movements of the eye, and the arteries that supply it with blood, and the nerves in the area are much more likely to be the cause of headache pain around the eye.

Problems with vision may contribute to or aggravate headache pain but are seldom the underlying cause of the headaches. Remember that there are muscles, veins, nerves, and arteries in and around the eye socket, so pain in this area does not necessarily mean that the patients has an optical problem.

For the vast majority of people with headache, glasses, eye exercises, and other types of "vision therapy" will not prove useful.