migraine
Comparing the Most Common Types of Migraines
There are currently five well documented instances of migraines that are diagnosed more often than any other kind. Three of them are well worth studying in more detail, since they represent the most common complaints given by patients to healthcare professionals.
1. Children are most likely to experience abdominal migraines. It is uncertain if they are brought on by stress or nervousness, or if they simply occur as part of the neurological disorder. Like most other migraines they last from one to three days, and express themselves in abdominal pain that cannot be traced back to the ingestion of certain foods or problems with bowel movements. There has been a fair amount of research that suggests that children who present at a young age with abdominal migraines will as adults develop different forms of the condition.
2. An acephalgic migraine is most closely associated with the tell tale headaches that accompany the disorder. Interestingly, an acephalgic migraine itself does not present with headaches as a symptom and it is only later that a patient will graduate to experiencing the kinds of migraines that actually are accompanied by headaches. Acephalgic migraines do show up with sudden bouts of nausea and vomiting as well as heightened sensitivity to light, sound and scents.
3. Familial hemiplegic migraines are those most commonly associated with the famous migraine headaches. In many cases there are also serious motor skills impairments that may occur concurrently with the headaches.
It is uncertain why a migraine may choose to express itself abdominally in youth, only to later on find different modes of expression. In the same vein, the fact that migraines do not have to be accompanied by headaches at all makes the condition somewhat hard to diagnose and understand, especially since so much mainstream knowledge centers on the presence of headaches concurrently with other symptoms.
The one commonality that the conditions share, however, is the one to three day timeframe that the different kinds or migraines may linger. The severity of the pain may differ – even from incident to incident – but there are thus far no reports of any migraine attack lasting longer than 72 hours. A blessing in disguise, it also provides a most valuable tool for the diagnosis of the condition.
It is crucial for sufferers to visit a physician and discuss the possibility of suffering from migraines early on. Different symptoms require different treatments, and in some cases there are actual dangers associated with the use of pain killers that might work well for some forms of migraine pains and symptoms. Only a physician skilled in the treatment of this condition can ascertain which medications are safe to use and which carry the highest likelihood of successfully seeing the patient through the episode.
In some cases primary care physicians are not sure that they can meet the needs of a migraine patient, and it is not uncommon for the patient to receive a referral to a specialist. This professional will then take over the treatment of the migraines.
Tags: types of migraines, abdominal migraines, acephalgic migraine, hemiplegic migraines, migraines
Your Information Source for Migraines
There are many reasons why you may be on an information search regarding migraines. You may suffer from migraines. Someone you know and care about may suffer from migraines. You may have just had a family member or yourself diagnosed as having migraines, or you could be a student doing a research paper on migraines. Regardless of why you are researching the topic of migraines there is plenty of information to be had on the subject.
The medical disorder, migraine is known as a neurological syndrome. The main characteristic that most individuals encounter is painful headaches, and nausea. This common condition affects more women than it does men.
The pain from the migraine is generally located on one side of the head and can be described as throbbing or pulsating in nature. The headache usually will last anywhere from 4 to 72 hours in duration and can be moderate to severe in intensity. There can be other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting or sensitivity to light or sound that accompany the headache.
There is another aspect of migraines and that is the presence of an "aura" in at least 1/3 of those who experience migraines. An aura is serious of complaints that occur prior to the onset of the migraine that can include the appearance of bright lights, zigzag lines, or distortions of shapes in various colors and sizes that appear in the line of vision. The vision field may also decrease and appear like tunnel vision or a curtain-like effect over one eye or dark spots that slowly spread. There may be auditory changes such as hearing of voices, or sounds in the environment such as buzzing. They may experience strange smells, or feelings of numbness or tingling on one side of the face or arms and legs. They may get a sense of being separated from one’s own body or a feeling like their arms and legs are moving independently from the body. They may feel anxiety, or fear during the aura or a weakness or unsteadiness. Saliva may collect at the corners of their mouth. Sometimes individuals experiencing an aura are unable to understand or comprehend words that are spoken to them during the aura. They may become extremely tired, sweat profusely or feel warmth throughout the body.
By far, the most common form of migraines occurs without auras. Besides the migraines with or without aura there are other ways of describing migraines such as familial hemiplegic migraine (FHM), which are those, which are caused by ion channel mutations. Individuals with this type of migraine usually experience limb weakness on one side of the body, with visual, sensory or speech difficulties. Another type of migraine is the abdominal migraine, which is where children have symptoms of migraines without the head pain. Symptoms are nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain that lasts from 1 to 72 hours.
Acephalgic migraine and menstrual migraine are two other types of migraines. Acephalgic migraines are those in which the individual usually experiences auras but do not experience the headache. Menstrual migraines have two characteristics the menstrual related migraine (MRM) and the pure menstrual migraine (PMM). The MRM is moderate to severe in pain intensity and occurs around the time of the monthly period and at other times too. The PMM occurs only around the time of the woman’s monthly period.
Tags: information on migraine, neurological syndrome, migraine
