Overview

Migraine is a neurological syndrome characterized by altered bodily experiences, painful headaches, and nausea. It is a common condition which affects women more frequently than it does men.

The typical migraine headache is one-sided and pulsating, lasting 4 to 72 hours. Accompanying complaints are nausea and vomiting, and a heightened sensitivity to bright lights (photophobia) and noise (hyperacusis). Approximately one third of people who experience migraine get a preceding aura, in which a patient may sense a strange light or unpleasant smell. Patients often describe triggers they feel precipitate an episode of migraine, such as certain foods and beverages (like chocolate or alcohol), stress or menstruation. In some migraine types there are typical features but the headache remains absent, and in children abdominal pain may be a prominent feature.

Although the exact cause of migraine remains unknown, the most widespread theory is that it is a disorder of the serotonergic control system. Genetic factors may also contribute. Studies on twins show that genes have a 60 to 65% influence on the development of migraine. Fluctuating hormone levels show a relation to migraine in several ways: three quarters of adult migraine patients are female while migraine affects approximately equal numbers of boys and girls before puberty,[citation needed] and migraine is known to disappear during pregnancy in a substantial number of sufferers.

The treatment of migraine begins with simple painkillers for headache and anti-emetics for nausea, and avoidance of triggers if present. Specific anti-migraine drugs can be used to treat migraine. If the condition is severe and frequent enough, preventative drugs might be considered.

The word migraine is French in origin and comes from the Greek hemicrania, as does the Old English term megrim. Literally, hemicrania means "half (the) head".

Friday, August 15, 2008

Natural Migraine Treatment

More than 20 million North Americans suffer from migraine, a one-sided, severe, throbbing or pulsating headache often accompanied by sensitivity to light and sound, as well as by nausea and vomiting. Migraines are also called vascular headaches, because they usually involve spasm of the arteries of the head, resulting in a pulsating pain. There are no successful medicines for it, only natural migraine treatments can help.

The headaches may last from a few hours to several days or even longer. About 10 percent of migraine sufferers experience a warning aura before the headache starts; this early symptom involves a visual disturbance, such as partial or temporary loss of sight or flashes of light and color. An aura may also cause tingling on one side of the face or body or a disturbance in the sense of smell.

Even those who don't experience an aura may have warning signs in the few hours leading up to a migraine, such as feelings of cold, craving for a specific food, mood changes, a sudden burst of energy, or frequent yawning. Migraines affect women about three times as often as men, and they commonly start between the ages of 18 and 44. Doctors think that they begin when triggers - dietary, hormonal, environmental, emotional, and other factors cause blood vessels in the brain to constrict and then relax. These distorted blood vessels prompt nerve endings to send out pain signals.

Natural migraine treatment involves relaxation techniques. In addition to using relaxation techniques, some doctors recommend taking a course in biofeedback to learn how to raise the temperature of your hands, thereby diverting some of the blood flow from the head to another part of the body. This technique can be used at the start of an attack.



Autor: Arun Vimal
Added: August 15, 2008
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/

0 comments: