Unlike lots of ailments, such as osteoporosis or a heart defect, migraine is not deadly. Nevertheless, it can severely poison one’s life, deprive it of its joy and limit the capability of a sick person. Unfortunately, modern medicine has not yet learned how to cure this disease. But significantly alleviate headaches and decrease the quantity of attacks we are quite capable.
According to unofficial estimates, migraine strikes about 30% of the world's population and, sad to say, frequently "the victims" of this type of pain are representatives of the fair sex. It is believed that females suffer from migraines ten times more often than men. A person`s heredity enhances or degrades his or her chances to experience migraine attacks.
Migraine is different from a conventional cephalalgia due to the next features:
- The pain is intense, pulsating, unilateral (i.e., localized on the right or left)
- A painful sensation amplifies, even at the lowest exercise stress
- Sometimes accompanied by concomitant symptoms, namely, queasiness or retching, as well as intolerance of glare and vowel sounds
- The attack can last for a very long time from 4 to 72 hours
Migraines are divided into 2 categories.
Migraine with aura, before the advent of powerful pulsating ache, the patient feels a turbidity of the eyes, strange smells, speech violation. These signs last from a few minutes to a few hours. But sometimes the aura acquires unusual shapes. Its rare form even became known as ``Alice in Wonderland syndrome`` (named after the book by Lewis Carroll, in which similar phenomena are described). At this syndrome an attack is preceded by optic images of humans or animals (remember the Cheshire cat?), which float in the air. In addition, the patient temporarily changes the perception of the size of surrounding objects (they seem tiny or huge), disturbed sense of the passage of time.
Migraine without aura: the second category comprises migraine, in which a diseased feels a sharp pain with a pulsating effect, nausea, intolerance of glare and vowel sounds, slow reaction.
If seizures rarely disturb you (1-2 times per month) to relieve headaches are usually used analgesics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. In addition, the triptans may be applied — more effective drugs specifically designed to deal with migraine. They quickly crop the pain. However, if attacks appear frequently or last a long time, anaesthetising can hurt. Prolonged receiving of majority analgesics (longer than 15 days per month) may, conversely, increase headaches. Therefore, in such cases, doctors recommend prophylactic therapy, regular intake of drugs that reduce the number of attacks and improve the body's response to pain relievers. As a rule, medics recommend antidepressants, antiepileptics, beta-blockers, as well as the preparation of botulinum toxin A— Botox. Usually it is used in cosmetics. However, doctors have noticed that in diseased, who were injected with Botox, reduced the frequency of migraine attacks. Beyond belief, but true!
Head pain in migraines frequently appears due to specific triggering factors (triggers). Among them — the change in hormonal levels, some products (such as red wine, cheese), hunger, dehydration, lack or excess of sleep, excessive physical activity, bright sunlight, anxiety, depression. Triggers have an ability to escalate each other's action. So avoidance of precipitating factors is the most simple and efficient way to decrease the quantity of attacks without pharmaceutical products. For migraines prevention is also helpful acupuncture, biofeedback and relaxation.
Fresh air, healthy sleep and a long warm bath can help relieve the ache at least a little bit. In order to effectively eliminate the pain and reinforce the combat against the migraine is necessary to see a medical professional who will help you to choose the course of healing and intrinsically "save" you from sufferings.