Migraine

Alternative Names

Migraine

What is Migraine

A migraine is a condition in which you have a pulsing or throbbing pain in one area of the head. It is one of the types of headaches. People suffering from migraine are very sensitive to light and sound. They may become nauseated and vomit. Migraine is more prevalent among women than men.

Signs and symptoms

The most common symptom of migraine is a severe headache that affects usually on one side of the head, but in rare cases, it can be on both sides of the head. You should not confuse ordinary headache with migraine, their symptoms are differ. People with migraine may experience a sensitivity to light, vomiting, nausea and sensitivity towards any kind of sound.

Possible complications

Migraine can cause the following complications:

• Abdominal problems caused by large doses of ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin)
• Rebound headaches happen when medicines not only stop relieving pain, but actually begin to cause headaches. You then use more pain medication, which traps you in a vicious cycle.
• Serotonin syndrome cause by migraine medicines- triptans such as sumatriptan (Imitrex) or zolmitriptan (Zomig).

What causes

Migraine can be caused by:

• Anxiety
• Stress
• Lack of food or sleep
• Exposure to light
• Hormonal changes (in women)

Prevention

You may prevent migraine by taking the following steps:

• You should avoid certain foods, scents that can cause this condition.
• Control your stress
• Regular aerobic exercise reduces tension and can prevent migraines
• Lose weight if you are over weight
• You should reduce the effects of estrogen

Treatment

There are 2 approaches in the treatment of migraines- abortive and preventive.

Abortive therapy focuses on stopping migraine once it starts.

Abortive drugs include the triptans which specifically target serotonin. They are all very similar in their action and chemical structure. The triptans are used only to treat headache. People with certain medical conditions should not take these medications. Abortive medicines can be taken by self-injection, by mouth or by nasal spray.

There is a list of some abortive medicines:

• Almotriptan (Axert)
• Eletriptan (Relpax)
• Frovatriptan (Frova)
• Naratriptan (Amerge, Naramig)
• Rizatriptan (Maxalt)
• Sumatriptan (Imitrex, Treximet)
• Zolmitriptan (Zomig)

Preventive therapy is used if migraines appear frequently, more than one migraine per week or if the symptoms are severe. It works to lessen the frequency and severity of the migraine attacks.

There is a list of preventive treatment medicines:

• Medications used to treat high blood pressure: beta-blockers (propranolol [Inderal], timolol), calcium channel blockers (verapamil [Covera])
• Antidepressants : amitriptyline (Elavil), nortriptyline (Pamelor)
• Antiseizure medications: gabapentin (Neurontin), topiramate (Topamax), valproic acid (Depakote)

You can also use some nontraditional supplement treatments for migraine such as butterbur, coenzyme Q10 and feverfew.