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What is a migraine?
Migraine Definition
Migraine is a genetic neurological disease, characterized by episodes often called Migraine attacks. They are quite different from regular headaches which are non-migrainous.
There are about 100 million people with headaches in the U.S.; about 37 million of these people have migraines. The World Health Organization suggests that 18 percent of women and 7 percent of men in the U.S. suffer from migraines.
Migraines are called primary headaches because the migraine pain isn’t caused by another disorder or disease such as a brain tumor or head injury. Some migraines cause pain on just the right side or left side of the head, others result in pain all over. Migraine sufferers may have moderate or severe pain and usually can’t participate in normal activities because of the pain. Often when a migraine strikes, people try to find a quiet, dark room.
How long do migraines last?
Many people experience migraines lasting for at least four hours or may last for days. The range of time someone is affected by an attack is actually longer than the migraine itself, as there is a pre-monitory, or build-up phase, and a post-drome that can last one to two days.
What causes migraines?
Different people have different migraine triggers and different migraine symptoms. Some people experience migraine aura, which can cause changes in vision. Sufferers have reported seeing flashes or bright spots. Although an exact cause is unknown, brain scans show that migraines may be due to “hyperactivity” in parts of the brain. Actually, a migraineur’s brain is biochemically different than that the brain of a person without this disorder.
Migraines in women are more common than migraines in men. Susceptibility to migraines tends to run in families.There is one rare genetically proven migrainen syndrome, Familial Hemiplegic Migraine (FHM) where a known genetic deficiency in one protein is present.
How do you diagnose migraines?
The diagnosis of migraines usually happens if people have a combination of symptoms and doctors have ruled out other disorders. The International Headache Society breaks migraines into two categories: migraine with aura and migraine without aura. Aura causes migraine sufferers to see spots, lights or blurry lines before pain strikes, among other symptoms. To diagnose a migraine without aura, the society says at least two of the following symptoms must be present: nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light, sensitivity to sound or sensitivity to smell.
What are the symptoms of a migraine
There are a large number of migraine symptoms, the most common are:
- Throbbing, pulsating pain — 85 percent
- Light sensitivity — 80 percent
- Sound sensitivity — 76 percent
- Nausea — 73 percent
- Pain on one side — 59 percent
- Vision changes, blurred vision — 44 percent
- Aura — 36 percent
- Vomiting — 29 percent
(Note: These figures are from the American Migraine Study II of almost 4,000 migraine sufferers in 1999.)
Other symptoms include:
- Sensitivity to smell
- Stiff neck
- Dizziness or dizzy spells
- Cloudy vision or other vision changes
- Weakness
Written by: Otesa Miles / Reviewed by: John-Claude Krusz, PhD, MD | Last review date: November 2010. Click the References Link below for a complete list of references.
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"I had my first migraine when I was 12. I thought I was going blind, the spots in my vision all grouped together and everything went black. The pain was intense and felt like my head would crack open above my right eye." 
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