Everyone knows how miserable a migraine is to handle. Most migraine sufferers are women. A recent study has shown that women who suffer from migraines are more likely to develop tissue changes in their brains than those who do not suffer from migraine headaches. At the same time, these changes do not seem to affect the women’s thinking or memory. For years, researchers wondered if migraines could leave a lasting impact on the brain. The new study shows that migraines may be tied to having structural changes in the brain for some people.
While other researchers linked these types of brain findings to memory loss and dementia, the researchers of this new study did not see any of these declines in the women who participated in this new study. On the one hand, it is comforting to know this and yet a more intensive, larger study needs to be conducted to confirm these results and to get more definitive answers. The study is reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
MIGRAINES AND BRAIN CHANGES
The study followed 203 people who suffered from migraine headache and 83 who did not. The people ranged in age from 43 to 72 years of age. The median age was 57. Researchers asked the participants how often and how intense their migraines were. They also asked about other health issues that can affect the brain like high blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking. People had MRI scans performed at the beginning of the study and again, nine years later to observe any changes. The type of brain damage done would show up as small bright spots on the MRI scan.
The amount of brain damage that showed up in the participants was small, overall. The important message of this research is that no additional more aggressive treatments for migraine headaches need to be developed. The brain damage is not significant.
For men, there were no association between migraines and changes in the brain but for women who suffered from migraines, the chance for developing new areas of scar tissue was twice as much as for those who did not experience the headache. About 77% of the women in the migraine group had more changes in the second scan than 60% of the women who didn’t have migraines. However, when the researchers tested brain function, there was no significant difference.
This is good news. Although there are lesions because of the headache, they are very small and really no need for panic. Migraine sufferers can relax, take care of their migraines, and be assured that their migraine headaches do not cause the damage that is apparent in dementia or stroke.
Tags: blurred vision, dizziness, head pain, lightheadedness, migraine symptoms, nausea, vomiting
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