MIGRAINE

Possible Cause

• Although much about the cause of migraines isn't understood genetics and environmental factors appear to play a role.Migraines may be caused by changes in the brainstem and its interactions with the trigeminal nerve, a major pain pathway.
• Imbalances in brain chemicals including serotonin, which helps regulate pain in your nervous system — also may be involved. Researchers continue to study the role of serotonin in migraines.
• Serotonin levels drop during migraine attacks This may cause your trigeminal system to release substances called neuropeptides, which travel to your brain's outer covering (meninges). The result is headache pain.
• Migraine headache triggers Common migraine triggers include:
  • Hormonal changes in women Fluctuations in estrogen seem to trigger headaches in many women with known migraines. Women with a history of migraines often report headaches immediately before or during their periods, when they have a major drop in estrogen. Others have an increased tendency to develop migraines during pregnancy or menopause. Hormonal medications, such as oral contraceptives and hormone replacement therapy, also may worsen migraines. Some women, however, may find their migraines occur less often when taking these medications.
  • Foods. Aged cheeses, salty foods and processed foods may trigger migraines. Skipping meals or fasting also can trigger attacks.
  • Food additives The sweetener aspartame and the preservative monosodium glutamate, found in many foods.
  • Drinks Alcohol, especially wine, and highly caffeinated beverages.
  • Stress Stress at work or home.
  • Sensory stimuli Bright lights and sun glare, as well as loud sounds. Unusual smells — including perfume, paint thinner, smoke and others.
  • Changes in wake-sleep pattern Missing sleep or getting too much sleep, as can jet lag.
  • Physical factors Intense physical exertion, including sexual activity.
  • Changes in the environment A change of weather or barometric pressure.
  • Medications Oral contraceptives and vasodilators, such as nitroglycerin, can aggravate migraines.

Risk Factors

A number of factors can increase your risk of having knee problems:

• Family history Up to 90 percent of the people suffering have a family history of migraine attacks. If one or both of your parents have migraines, then your chances increase too.
• Age Migraines can begin at any age, though most people experience their first migraine during adolescence. By age 40, most people who have migraines have had their first attack.
• Sex Women are three times more likely to have migraines. Headaches tend to affect boys more than girls during childhood, but by the time of puberty, more girls are affected.
• Hormonal changes If you're a woman who has migraines, you may find that your headaches begin just before or shortly after onset of menstruation.

They may also change during pregnancy or menopause. Generally migraines improve after menopause.

Some women report that migraine attacks begin during pregnancy, or the attacks may get worse. However, for many, the attacks improved or didn't occur during later stages in the pregnancy.

Complications

Sometimes your efforts to control your pain cause problems.

• Abdominal problems Certain pain relievers called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others), may cause abdominal pain, bleeding, ulcers and other complications, especially if taken in large doses or for a long period of time.
• Medication-overuse headaches If you take over-the-counter or prescription headache medications more than 10 days a month for three months, or in high doses, you may be setting yourself up for a serious complication known as medication-overuse headaches.
• Medication-overuse headaches occur when medications not only stop relieving pain but also cause headaches.
• Serotonin syndrome is a rare, potentially life-threatening condition that occurs when your body has too much serotonin, which is a chemical found in your nervous system. It may occur if you take migraine medications called triptans and antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs).

These medications naturally raise serotonin levels. When combined, they cause increased serotonin levels in your system, more than if you were taking one of these medications.

Triptans include medications such as sumatriptan (Imitrex) or zolmitriptan (Zomig). Some common SSRIs include sertraline (Zoloft), fluoxetine (Sarafem, Prozac) and paroxetine (Paxil). SNRIs include duloxetine (Cymbalta) and venlafaxine (Effexor XR). Some people experience complications from migraines such as:

• Chronic migraine If your migraine lasted for 15 or more days a month for more than three months.
• Status migrainosus People with this complication have migraine attacks that last for more than three days.
• Persistent aura without infarction Usually an aura goes away after the migraine attack. However, some people have an aura that lasts for more than one week after a migraine attack has finished. A prolonged aura may have similar symptoms to bleeding in the brain (stroke).
• Migrainous infarction Some people who have a migraine with aura may have aura symptoms that last longer than one hour. This can be a sign of bleeding in the brain (stroke). If you have a migraine with aura, and your aura symptoms last longer than one hour, you should have it evaluated. Doctors can conduct neuroimaging tests to determine if you have bleeding in the brain.

Care and Treatment

The following suggestions may help forestall injuries:.

• Avoid triggers If certain foods or odors seem to have triggered your migraines in the past, avoid them.Your doctor may recommend you reduce your caffeine and alcohol intake and avoid tobacco.In general, establish a daily routine with regular sleep patterns and regular meals. In addition, try to control stress.
• Exercise regularly Regular aerobic exercise reduces tension and can help prevent migraines. If your doctor agrees, choose any aerobic exercise you enjoy, including walking, swimming and cycling. Warm up slowly, however, because sudden, intense exercise can cause headaches. Obesity is also thought to be a factor in migraine headaches, and regular exercise can help you maintain a healthy weight or lose weight.
• Reduce the effects of estrogen If you're a woman who has migraines and estrogen seems to trigger or make your headaches worse, you may want to avoid or reduce the medications you take that contain estrogen.

These medications include birth control pills and hormone replacement therapy. Talk with your doctor about the appropriate alternatives or dosages for you.

NA