Chronic Migraine Headaches
Chronic Migraine Headaches
Many People suffer from chronic migraine headaches and 75% of them are women. These headaches can be disabling and they are the most common headaches that people seek the help of physician to manage. The throbbing pain, nausea, and visual disturbances, along with facial pain and numbness may last from 4-72 hours and often sends the sufferer to the comfort of a darkened room until it subsides.
Chronic migraines may be composed of four phases: the prodrome, the aura, the attack, and the postdrome phase. These phases may not be present in every patient each time. The prodrome phase consists of vague symptoms that may present a few hours or even a few days before an attack. Sensitivity to light, changes in appetite, thirst, fatigue, drowsiness, and mood changes may signal the beginning of a migraine.
In 1-5 patients auras may precede the attack. Some people experience bright or shimmering lights at the edge of their field of vision. Others see zigzag lines or stars. Darker auras include dark holes, tunnel vision, or blind spots. Some patients experience speech disturbances, confusion, tingling, numbness, or weakness in a limb, or perceptual disturbances.
The actual attacks are categorized by severe throbbing pain on one side of the head that may spread to the entire head. The pain is usually worsened by physical activity and nausea and vomiting may occur. The facial tingling and numbness may be accompanied by extreme sensitivity to light and sound. Even hearing someone walk across the floor in the same room can be excruciating. The period after a migraine attack is called the postdrome period and the patient may feel exhausted and mentally foggy for a while.
My aunt had these headaches her entire life and spent several days in bed each month completely incapacitated.
Chronic migraine headaches are also called transformed migraines and typically begin as episodic headaches in the teens and twenties and then increase in frequency over time. These headaches generally occur in at least 50% of the days of the month, and often on a near daily basis. Medication overuse can cause rebound headaches with prescription and non-prescription drugs. Obesity and overuse of caffeine other factors that may increase the risk of episodic headaches becoming chronic.
Until recently, abnormalities of the blood vessels in the head were thought to be mainly responsible for chronic migraine headaches. Now doctors believe that migraines start with an underlying central nervous system disorder. Various stimuli trigger biochemical events that affect the brain’s vascular system, but no experimental model fully explains it. Patients may be asked to keep a headache diary of sorts, noting what kinds of events triggered the attack. Lifestyle changes including avoiding foods and activities that precipitate an attack are recommended. Pain medication and preventative medication may also be prescribed for chronic sufferers. Whatever the cause, people who suffer with migraines just want relief from these crippling headaches that interfere with their daily life.
