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headache attributed to pre-eclampsia

Preeclampsia, Migraine, and Magnesium

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Preeclampsia is a high blood pressure condition in pregnancy. It has come up here at Headache and Migraine News more than once for a couple of reasons. First, pre-eclampsia can cause a pulsating headache, as well as symptoms such as dizziness and nausea.

Although these symptoms may be similar to migraine attacks, migraine itself has also be connected to preeclampsia. Women with a history of migraine may be at increased risk for preeclampsia.

If you’re experiencing new headache symptoms late in pregnancy, it’s critical that you have a checkup as soon as possible. The headaches may be an indication of a number of conditions, some more dangerous than others.

Recently at the New York Headache blog, Dr. Alexander Mauskop pointed out another interesting connection between migraine and preeclampsia. There is a certain treatment that is similar in both – magnesium.

As the American Family Physician as pointed out, “Studies have shown the effectiveness of magnesium in eclampsia and preeclampsia, arrhythmia, severe asthma, and migraine” (see Magnesium: Top of the List for Migraine).

Magnesium is taken as a daily supplement by many people with migraine, but it’s also given in the emergency room to stop severe migraine in its tracks. It’s also given in cases of preeclampsia and eclampsia, to stop convulsions and allow for a more normal delivery of the baby.

So the question is – is it just that magnesium happens to be effective for both migraine and preeclampsia, or is this actually an indication of abnormally low levels of magnesium in some patients?

Dr. Mauskop looks at a recent study that searched for factors that may predispose women to preeclampsia. The study did not check for low magnesium levels. As he writes:

If preeclampsia responds so well to magnesium, it is possible that these women have chronic magnesium deficiency. Magnesium deficiency predisposes people not only to migraines, but also to heart attacks and strokes. The test that should have been done is red blood cell (RBC) magnesium since 98% of magnesium is inside the cells or in the bones. The most commonly used serum magnesium level measures the remaining 2% and is highly unreliable.

He goes on to recommend that women who have suffered from preeclampsia or eclampsia be tested, and that they generally try to lower their risk for vascular problems:

If you’ve suffered from preeclampsia or eclampsia, in addition to reducing other risk factors for vascular problems – control your blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol, stop smoking if you smoke, lose weight, and exercise, you may also want to ask your doctor to check your RBC magnesium level. If the level is low or at the bottom of normal range, take a magnesium supplement. A good starting dose is 400 mg of magnesium glycinate taken daily with food. If subsequent tests show no improvement, the dose can be increased to 400 mg twice a day and even higher.

Read more from Dr. Mauskop here: Preeclampsia can have lasting effects on the brain

It would be interesting to see a study of magnesium levels in women who have had preeclampsia, and to hear from you if you’ve suffered from both preeclampsia and migraine, and have found magnesium to be an effective preventative.

Preeclampsia and Migraines

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Is there a connection between preeclampsia and migraines?  Or are there special symptoms related to preeclampsia?

Preeclampsia is, of course, a high blood pressure condition that occurs during pregnancy.  It can even be a slight increase in blood pressure.  Preeclampsia is diagnosed when there is excess protein in your urine.  There are other markers in a urine test that can warn you of preeclampsia.

Preeclampsia can put both you and your baby at serious risk.  At times there are few or no symptoms, which is another reason why it’s important to have regular checkups during pregnancy.

But what about preeclampsia and migraines?  Can this condition actually cause migraine attacks?

There are some clear links between pre-eclampsia and migraine.  For example, women taking triptan medications during pregnancy are more likely to develop preeclampsia.  At least one study has suggested that women with migraine are more likely to develop preeclampsia in pregnancy.

Changes in the body can certainly trigger migraine attacks in a migraineur.  However, the headaches that are caused by preeclampsia are not called migraine headaches, although some of the symptoms may be similar.

There is a specific term for headache and related symptoms in preeclampsia – it has the rather unimaginative name of headache attributed to pre-eclampsia.

And yes, the symptoms can be similar to a migraine attack.

This headache has at least one of these characteristics:  It’s on both sides of the head, pulsating, and/or aggravated by physical activity.

A preeclampsia headache will actually develop when your blood pressure is high.  Once hypertension has been treated, the headache will be gone within a week.

Some of the other typical preeclampsia symptoms are also found in many migraine attacks.  For example:

  • problems with vision, including loss of vision, blurred vision, and auras
  • photophobia (sensitivity to light)
  • nausea
  • dizziness
  • anxiety/confusion
  • abdominal pain

These symptoms can make a preeclampsia look very much like a migraine attack.

Preeclampsia and Migraines?

Since women with preeclampsia can actually be symptom-free, it can be challenging to diagnose preeclampsia early, especially if you’re not seeing your doctor at regular intervals during pregnancy.  However, as always, if you notice any changes in your headache/migraine symptoms, you do need to see a doctor right away.  If you’re pregnant, have tests done for preeclampsia.  There are actually other factors that can cause a headache with Headache attributed to pre-eclampsia symptoms.

Once these other possibilities have been ruled out, you may have a diagnosis of migraine, or a type of headache.  For more on dealing with headache during pregnancy, check here.

If you have migraine and pre-eclampsia, make sure your doctor knows about both conditions.  There are some drugs that are used to treat both conditions.

Visit the Mayo Clinic for more on Preeclampsia.

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The articles on Headache and Migraine News are © 2004-2026 J. Cottrill.
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