Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Migraines - Not Just An Ordinary Headache!

By: Richard H Ealom

INTRODUCTION: Migraine is a disease, a headache is only a symptom. These headaches, with nausea and vomiting, routinely begin in childhood and tend to becomes less severe and often with age. They can occur any hour of the day, though they frequently starts in the morning. The pain is produce by vasodilation in the cranial blood vessels (expansion of the blood vessels), while Headache pain is caused by vasoconstriction (narrowing of the blood vessels). The disease characteristics can include: Pain usually on one side of the head with a pulsating or throbbing quality, Moderate to intense pain affecting day to day activities, Nausea or vomiting, Sensitivity to light or sound.

Attacks often last from four hours to three days, sometimes longer and visual disturbances or aura Exertion such as climbing stairs makes the headaches worse. Approximately 20% of people experience aura, the warning associated with migraine, prior to the headache pain. It is frequently mis-diagnosed as
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