Posted on 11/20/2007 3:04:02 PM PST by blam
Migraine suffers have 'different brains'
By Nick Allen
Last Updated: 11:01am GMT 20/11/2007
Scientists have discovered structural differences in the brains of people who suffer from migraines.
The researchers found variations in the cortex area that processes pain and other sensory information from the body.
They said it was unclear whether the anomalies actually cause migraines or are themselves caused by severe, recurrent headaches.
Brain scans were carried out on 24 people who had a long history of migraines and 12 who did not.
The area of the brain that detects pain, touch and temperature, known as the somatosensory cortex, was 21 percent thicker in migraine sufferers.
Dr. Nouchine Hadjikhani of Massachusetts General Hospital, who led the study, said: “Repeated migraine attacks may lead to, or be the result of, these structural changes in the brain.
“Most of these people had been suffering from migraines since childhood, so the long-term over-stimulation of the sensory fields in the cortex could explain these changes.
“It’s also possible that people who develop migraines are naturally more sensitive to stimulation.
“This may explain why people with migraines often also have other pain disorders such as back pain, jaw pain, and other sensory problems such as allodynia, where the skin becomes so sensitive that even a gentle breeze can be painful.”
Migraines are a type of painful headache commonly accompanied by nausea, vomiting and heightened sensitivity to light and sound.
Women are three times more likely than men to get them and many sufferers have a family history of migraines.
The latest findings were published in the journal Neurology.
Previous research has shown that the cortex becomes thinner in sufferers of neurological disorders including multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease.
Professor Peter Goadsby, of the University College London Institute of Neurology, said the study provided clear evidence that migraine is a brain disorder.
Neanderthal brains?
Maybe.
My migraines lasted well into my late 30’s and then just dissapeared. I guess my brain got better?
Perhaps the guy/girl writing it had a headache at the time...
susie
Thick brains = migraines.
My ex-wife is suddenly less of a mystery...
I started to get cluster headaches (much worse than migranes) in my 30's. I guess my brain degraded for some reason.
My migraines tended to wane as I got older also. Late 40s. Another thing that helped cure my migraines, I got the hell out of California.
Mine was the opposite, getting worse and I get older.
Mine seem to be mainly hormonal. They were always cyclical. Once I had a hysterectomy and started taking estrogen, they decreased. Though other things can set them off (Excedrin with caffeine usually controls them), if I miss taking my estrogen for more than a day, it takes a day or two to recover as NOTHING will get rid of the migraine.
Maybe I should go get my brain thinned out?!!!
Shouldn't that be sufferers in the title?
Yup.
ping
btt
Probably the latter, since there are countless former migraine sufferers.
Yes and no.....It didn't really get better its just that it got fuller with information.
I have a similar problem but it's not migraines. I finally realized that at the age of 57 my brain has become filled up and that is why I have problems remembering simple things like what I had for dinner last night or where I placed my drill-driver yesterday when I went upstairs to answer the phone but was delayed because I found my shoes at the top of the stairs and had to go place them in my closet but on the way to the closet I had to first check my computer to see if I had received any emails but before I could reply to those emails I had to go to the mailbox to see if I had any mail, which of course I did. On the way back to the kitchen I spotted my cat's water bowl empty so of course I had to fill her dish with water. After filling her bowl, I had nothing else to do but to go back to my computer to see if there were any posts to me on FR.........
The problem I face right now is where are my shoes, where is my drill-driver and where is my mail...........But I don't have migraines.
My ex was a migraine sufferer and she DEFINITELY had a ‘different brain;’ i.e., she was frigid.
Petronski sure dodged a bullet on that deal, let me tell you.
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