What is the medical term for a headache?

The medical term for a headache is "cephalalgia." This term is derived from Greek, where "cephalus" refers to the head and "algia" means pain. Therefore, cephalalgia specifically denotes pain in the head, which encompasses a wide variety of headache types, including tension headaches, cluster headaches, and migraines.

In contrast, neuralgia refers to pain along the path of a nerve, often resulting from nerve injury or irritation, rather than being a general term for headaches. Myalgia indicates muscle pain and does not pertain to headache issues. A migraine is a specific type of headache characterized by severe pain, often accompanied by symptoms like nausea and sensitivity to light; however, it is not the general term for all headaches. Thus, cephalalgia is the appropriate and more encompassing term.