WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT MIGRAINE
Christiane Tourtet B.A.
October 01, 2008
Migraine headache is three times more common in women than in men. The pain of a
migraine headache is quite often described as a throbbing pain or as an intense pulsing in one area of the head, accompanied , many times with nausea, vomiting, and extreme sensitivity to sound and light. Some people can actually predict the onset of a migraine, because it is preceded by a sort of "aura", visual disturbances, that can appear as zig-zag lines, flashing lights and even a temporary loss of vision. Many people tend to have recurring migraine attacks, triggered by exposure to light, lack of sleep or food, hormonal irregularities ( for women only), stress, anxiety, or even relaxation after stress.
For quite a few years scientists believed that migraines were linked to the constriction and dilation of blood vessels in the head. However, now, investigators believe that migraine is caused by inherited genes abnormalities that control the activities of cell populations in the brain. Migraines headaches can be approached in two ways, in regard to treatment with drugs: relieve the symptoms during the attacks, or prevent attacks. Many people with migraine use both approaches by taking medications which originally were developed for depression and for epilepsy, for the prevention of future attacks, and for treating attacks whenever they occur with drugs called triptans that restore function, and relieve pain. For some women whose migraines appear to be linked to their menstrual cycle, hormone therapy may help them. Strategies for the management of stress, such as relaxation, exercise, biofeedback, and other therapies made to help decrease discomfort, may possibly reduce the severity and occurrence of migraines attacks.
Women whose attacks of migraines occur in connection with their menstrual cycle are likely to have milder symptoms and fewer attacks after menopause. Taking a combination of drugs to treat migraine attacks whenever they occur, or to prevent them, usually helps most people by reducing the disabling effects of these headaches. Researchers believe now that migraine is the result of fundamental neurological abnormalities caused by genetic mutations at work in the brain. Investigations of the familial subtypes of migraines which are more rare, are yielding useful information about specific genes in regard to what they don´t do or what they do, to cause the pain of migraine headache.
Understanding the cascade of biological events that occur in the brain to cause a migraine, as well as the mechanisms underlying these occurrences, will provide researchers opportunities to develop and test drugs that could interrupt or prevent migraine attacks.
Resource:
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institutes of Health
© 2008 Christiane Tourtet, all rights reserved.
migraine headache is quite often described as a throbbing pain or as an intense pulsing in one area of the head, accompanied , many times with nausea, vomiting, and extreme sensitivity to sound and light. Some people can actually predict the onset of a migraine, because it is preceded by a sort of "aura", visual disturbances, that can appear as zig-zag lines, flashing lights and even a temporary loss of vision. Many people tend to have recurring migraine attacks, triggered by exposure to light, lack of sleep or food, hormonal irregularities ( for women only), stress, anxiety, or even relaxation after stress.
For quite a few years scientists believed that migraines were linked to the constriction and dilation of blood vessels in the head. However, now, investigators believe that migraine is caused by inherited genes abnormalities that control the activities of cell populations in the brain. Migraines headaches can be approached in two ways, in regard to treatment with drugs: relieve the symptoms during the attacks, or prevent attacks. Many people with migraine use both approaches by taking medications which originally were developed for depression and for epilepsy, for the prevention of future attacks, and for treating attacks whenever they occur with drugs called triptans that restore function, and relieve pain. For some women whose migraines appear to be linked to their menstrual cycle, hormone therapy may help them. Strategies for the management of stress, such as relaxation, exercise, biofeedback, and other therapies made to help decrease discomfort, may possibly reduce the severity and occurrence of migraines attacks.
Women whose attacks of migraines occur in connection with their menstrual cycle are likely to have milder symptoms and fewer attacks after menopause. Taking a combination of drugs to treat migraine attacks whenever they occur, or to prevent them, usually helps most people by reducing the disabling effects of these headaches. Researchers believe now that migraine is the result of fundamental neurological abnormalities caused by genetic mutations at work in the brain. Investigations of the familial subtypes of migraines which are more rare, are yielding useful information about specific genes in regard to what they don´t do or what they do, to cause the pain of migraine headache.
Understanding the cascade of biological events that occur in the brain to cause a migraine, as well as the mechanisms underlying these occurrences, will provide researchers opportunities to develop and test drugs that could interrupt or prevent migraine attacks.
Resource:
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institutes of Health
© 2008 Christiane Tourtet, all rights reserved.
Print
Email
