Migraine and Stroke in Young Adults and more
 |
The most common single cause of stroke in young adults is something called cervical artery dissection. This is a problem with one of two major arteries in your neck. When the lining of one of the arteries becomes torn, the blood can clot and weaken the wall of the artery or actually block it.
This problem can heal on its own, but it can be serious not only because of the symptoms it can cause but because it can cause stroke before it properly heals.
We know that there seems to be an increased risk of stroke for migraine patients. So the question is, is there a correlation between migraine and cervical artery dissection (CAD)?
According to a new study, yes.
The study out of Finland was written up last month. The researchers took 313 CAD patients and looked for lifetime prevalence of migraine. They also looked at migraine type and CAD type.
Both men and women with CAD were significantly more likely to have migraine disease, particularly migraine with aura.
And another interesting note. When CAD occurred, often patients reported an alleviation of migraine – another interesting link that needs to be investigated.
What we want to do is narrow down exactly why migraineurs are more likely to be stroke victims. It looks like this may be an important link. There could be, for example, a genetic factor that is causing both migraine and CAD.
The researchers concluded: Our observations suggest that patients with CAD are a significant link between ischemic stroke and migraine.
Read more about the study at Migraine with Aura Is a Risk Factor for Cervical Artery Dissection: A Case-Control Study.
2 June 2010 @ 5:23 am
I am curious to know if if cervical artery dissection can be felt. I suffer from migraines (all of my life) and recently have had this pain on the left side of my neck more towards my throat than my spine. I have no idea what it is.
21 June 2010 @ 11:29 am
Interesting question. I know that CAD can certainly lead to various symptoms and conditions, but it can be very different in each person.
30 September 2010 @ 11:55 am
I notice that when I have a migraine I tend to feel the need to message the back of my neck by my spine (the right side in particular). I even beg my husband to give me a neck message to help eleviate the pain from the pressure I feel building up in my neck up to the base of my spine. BTW my mirgaines are always just above my right eye and I feel them to the back of my head. I’ve even wondered if I had a sinus problem on that side of my head? But how could that be when I get a migraine just before or just after my montly period. I do not currently see a specialist for my migraine, should I?
6 December 2010 @ 1:49 pm
It can be tricky to draw appropriate conclusions from such studies. That study concludes that patients with CAD are more likely to have migraines than the control group. The possibility, then, is that CAD can be a contributing factor to migraines.
The reverse test case was not performed: take a group of migraineurs vs. a control group of non-migraineurs, then compare the incidence of CAD. Thus, one must take care NOT to prematurely conclude that this study says that migraineurs are at increased risk of CAD. It doesn’t (and cannot) say that: it demonstrates the reverse, that CAD sufferers are more likely to suffer from migraines than non-CAD sufferers.
The study attempted to see if migraine–particularly migraine with aura–might be a risk factor for CAD, but they didn’t construct the study properly for that. They showed, instead, that CAD is a risk factor for migraine. Perverse, isn’t it?