Dizziness and Migraines: The Forgotten Symptom

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

When you think of a migraine, many symptoms may come to mind: incapacitating pain, sound sensitivity, light sensitivity, nausea – just to name a few. However, one potential symptom of migraine is often overlooked: dizziness (also known as vertigo). According to Dr. Timothy Hain, professor of Neurology, Otolaryngology, and Physical Therapy/Human Movement at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, only 372 research articles concerning migraine with vertigo have been published since 1952 (this number was attained from the National Library of Medicine’s search engine, PubMed, in 2008). “This indicates that while migraine associated vertigo has not been ignored, it has not elicited nearly as much attention from the research community as other disorders,” writes Hain in his report entitled “Migraine Associated Vertigo (MAV).”

MAV is quite a common symptom for migraine sufferers. Studies suggest that nearly 30 million people in the United States suffer from migraine and about 27-42% of them experience an element of vertigo during migraine attacks. Moreover, approximately 36% of these patients experienced vertigo even during headache-free periods. MAV can last anywhere from a few minutes to several days, making daily tasks near impossible.

Unfortunately the underlying cause of MAV is still unknown. Oftentimes, vertigo comes from an underlying motion-sickness symptom that is common among migraine sufferers. Hain’s research indicates that 50% of patients with migraine have motion sickness, compared to about 5-20% for control groups. Some researchers also believe that the vertigo may have to do with a gene-related pain control (one that is activated during migraines), as well as with the neurotransmitter serotonin. Current diagnosis of MAV is done by examining clinical histories, if available, or testing for vertigo immediately before, during and/or after a migraine attack.

Because causes of MAV are unknown, treatment is limited to trying to reduce the prevalence of the actual migraine and its associated symptoms. We recommend avoiding certain food triggers such as cheese, chocolate, alcohol and products containing MSG. For some patients, treatment with verapamil, or a long-acting beta-blocker such as propranolol or a tricyclic medication such as amitriptyline has shown promise. Verapamil and amitriptyline are especially helpful because of their anticholinergic properties, which may help control vertigo independently of whether they help with migraines, Hain’s report states.

Please visit www.headaches.org for more information on the common symptoms of migraine.

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Tags: Dizziness, Food Triggers, Light Sensitivity, migraine, Motion-sickness, nausea, Sound Sensitivity, Vertigo
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Children Experience Frequent Headaches

Monday, July 27th, 2009

In the U.S., most children will experience at least one headache by the time they graduate high school. Approximately 20% of children age 5-17 deal with chronic headache, which means that 10.3 million kids experience head pain at least 15 days per month.

Fortunately, 95% of child sufferers do not experience headache resulting from disease or organic problems, such as a tumor, abscess or head trauma. But watching your child suffer from headache can be painful, which is why the National Headache Foundation (NHF) offers a variety of advice and resources to help you and your child cope with headache.

Identifying your child’s headache

As in adults, headache in children can be classified into two types: primary or benign (migraine, tension-type) and secondary (due to underlying, organic causes).

Primary causes:

Of the 20% of child headache sufferers, approximately 15% experience tension-type headaches and 5% have migraines.

If your child suffers from tension-type headache, he/she will report pain that is dispersed and feels like a tight band around the head. Tension-type headache is the most common type of headache in children and usually is not associated with nausea or vomiting. Emotional factors such as stressful school situations or family dynamics can trigger these headaches in children. If you think your child is suffering from tension-type headaches, you should talk with him/her about factors that may be causing these headaches.

Children who suffer from migraine feel a throbbing pain on both sides of the head (adults with migraine only experience pain on one side of the head) and often experience nausea and vomiting. Your child may be irritable or have a pale appearance or glassy eyes before or during the attack. Fortunately, the symptoms will disappear in some children about five to seven years after they first appear, but research shows that children who vomit without headache or children who have motion sickness may also experience migraine later in life.

Migraine will occur in about one-quarter of migraine sufferers before the age of five and in about half before the age of 20. Migraine can also occur after head injury, but normally the patient will fully recover after a period of time.

Secondary Causes:

Viral and bacterial infections are a common cause of headache in children. If a new or sudden onset headache is accompanied by fever, lethargy and stiff neck, your child could have meningitis or encephalitis and you should seek medical attention immediately. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, muscular incoordination, weakness, seizures, and personality changes.

For new or different headaches, a first priority is to rule out increased pressure in the brain and surrounding tissues, which may be due to tumors, infection or blood clots.

Treatment for your children

Treatment for headache is individualized, so you should discuss your child’s treatment with your doctor. The NHF also suggests these simple at-home adjustments to help your child avoid headache.

·     Make sure your child has regular sleep and eating habits. Research proves that many have fewer and less distressing attacks after a sense of regularity is established.

·     Make sure you child drinks lots of fluids. Dehydration can trigger headache.

·     Limit your child’s caffeine and sugar consumption.

·     Monitor the amount of time your child watches TV and uses a computer.

To learn more about your child’s headaches, listen to our Podcast with headache expert Dr. Jennifer Bickel and check out our educational resource Children’s Headaches: An Informative Guide for Young Sufferers, Their Parents, and School Health Professionals.

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Tags: Causes, children, Daily, headache, Headaches, help, nausea, Pain, tension, Trigger, vomiting
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How do you know if you have a migraine?

Monday, June 22nd, 2009

Each year, approximately 90% of the U.S. population will experience at least one headache and 13% will experience migraine. Of the 29.5 million migraine sufferers in the U.S., only 15-30% will seek medical attention.

Migraine is a serious condition that impacts our society. Each year, it is estimated that time lost from work due to headache costs the nation up to $17 billion dollars in absenteeism, lost productivity and medical expenses. Though migraine is more prevalent among women (18% of the population), the disorder affects men as well (6% of the population). Most sufferers have a family history of migraine.

Many factors trigger migraine such as stress, environmental factors, depression, or certain medication.

According to the NHF, migraine characteristics include:

• Pain typically on one side of the head
• Pain has a pulsating or throbbing quality
• Moderate to intense pain affecting daily activities
• Attacks last four to 72 hours, sometimes longer
• Exertion such as climbing stairs makes headache worse

And is associated with at least one of the following:

• Nausea or vomiting
• Sensitivity to light or sound

Sufferers should be aware that migraine attacks come in four phases: the prodrome, the aura, the headache, and the postdrome. The prodrome occurs hours or days before the attack and the migraneur experiences sensitivity to light and sounds, mood changes, loss of appetite or certain cravings, fatigue, or constipation or diarrhea. About 20% of sufferers will then experience aura. Those with aura will endure visual disturbances such as wavy lines, dots, or flashing lights about 20 minutes to an hour before head pain. Some people will also experience tingling in their arms or face or difficulty speaking. The head pain will last anywhere from several hours to several days and is associated with the above symptoms. Finally, during the postdrome, or period after the headache, the sufferer may feel listless, weak, irritable, and/or fatigued.

There are many recognized prevention and treatment methods for migraine. Explore our website to understand how to relieve your head pain.

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Tags: aura, depression, medication, migraine, nausea, prodrome, sensitivity, Trigger
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