Migrainous Infarction – A Stroke from Migraine?
She has migraine with aura. But this time, aura symptoms last more than an hour. Tests (neuroimaging) show that she has had “cerebral infarction”. This is a disturbance of blood vessels supplying the brain. This causes a type of stroke.
The result may be a variety of stroke symptoms.
Although migraine with aura may increase your risk of stroke, migrainous infarction is much more rare, because it occurs during the aura phase of migraine.
Migrainous infarction is VERY rare.
If your aura symptoms unusually last over an hour, get to a doctor immediately!
Additional notes: In answer to the question above – is this a stroke from migraine? We actually don’t fully understand the connection. Migrainous infarction is not a stroke which happens to occur during a migraine attack, or the migraine-like symptoms that may accompany a stroke. In migrainous infarction, the aura symptom or symptoms are actually related to the infarction. In other words, the blood vessels and part of the brain which is affected is related to the type of aura symptoms you have.
Again, it is extremely rare, and people have been mistakenly diagnosed when they actually have a different condition.
For more information: Migrainous infarction from the International Headache Society; Clinical and MRI characteristics of acute migrainous infarction.
21 October 2013 @ 6:00 pm
Migraines I have are so bad that I can’t even move, I get sick, the pain is so excrutiating, I want to die, it’s horrible, it lasts way too longer and I always said one of these days it will kill me, and this is what I expect can happen, I am now receiving botox treatments and in the early stages but finding relief, I remember a doctor saying to me once, It may hurt but it won’t kill you, I remember thinking Doctor you are wrong and now after my 50 years of suffering, they are working very hard to find migraine patients relief from this terrible pain & suffering, and I thank all those who work so hard for a possible cure! Thank You, Fern Goodale
21 October 2013 @ 6:03 pm
great article, I knew in my own mind from suffering , this was a huge possibility! now there is proof and evidence of the stroke from a migraine!
21 October 2013 @ 6:15 pm
This is what happened to me. You know when it happens it’s an emergency and not an aura. I lost control of my left side, dropped what I was holding, felt I was in a dream and then lost consciousness briefly. I had trouble speaking afterwards and was put in an ambulance. They kept me for a week before diagnosing Basilar Type Migraine-induced TIA.
21 October 2013 @ 6:31 pm
I have suffered from migraines since the age of eight and have had constant daily migraines for the last 17yrs. I have had more T.I.A.’s than I can remember, I was lucky to have had a really great neurologist when they started happening. I’ve also had seizures caused by the migraines as well.
21 October 2013 @ 6:57 pm
Pamela how of you deal with them? I have suffered for over 10 years.
21 October 2013 @ 9:15 pm
Same thing happened to me 2 and half weeks ago. I have had bad migraines since I was 10, now chronic daily migraines and they do cause seizures.
22 October 2013 @ 1:14 am
I have had two migrainous strokes, one at age 20 and one age 35. I have some short term memory issues and problem finding the right word sometimes but otherwise no lasting effects.
Nikki_Albert
22 October 2013 @ 4:16 am
Sometimes I think we would know since we know the signs of stroke. Sometimes… I’m not so sure. And since the… http://t.co/fzI9w32MtO