Migraines linked to heart attack risk (USA)

"People who suffer from migraine headaches may be much more likely to have a heart attack as well as a host of risk factors for heart disease, according to a new study. Although the overall risk was small, researchers found that people who have migraines were twice as likely to have a heart attack, and people who have migraines with aura were nearly three times more likely to have a heart attack, than others. Migraines with aura are preceded by sensations such as seeing flashing lights. The study also shows that people with migraines are more likely to have major risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol, which may partially explain this increased risk of heart attack. "Our results provide another reason for people with migraine to reduce other risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure and obesity," says researcher Marcelo E. Bigal, MD, PhD, of Merck Research Laboratories and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, N.Y., in a news release. However, even after adjusting for these underlying risk factors for heart disease, researchers found people with migraines were still more likely to have a heart attack, stroke, or evidence of peripheral artery disease (a buildup of plaque in the arteries usually in the legs or arms). The study compared the risk of heart attack, stroke, and other risk factors for heart disease among 6,102 people with migraine headaches and a comparison group of 5,243 people without headaches who were surveyed about their health. The results, published in Neurology, showed that 4.1% people who had migraines had a heart attack compared with 1.9% of the rest. The risk of heart attack was nearly three times greater for people who experienced migraine with aura than for people without migraines" - WebMD

Closing hole in heart may ease migraines

A simple procedure may be the key to relief for some who suffer from frequent and severe migraine headaches. In a new study, researchers found significant improvement of migraines following catheter-based closure of the patent foramen ovale (PFO) - a slight opening in the wall between the heart's right and left atria. Each of us has a PFO in the womb to divert blood away from the lungs, but it closes for three out of four people after birth, researchers said. Previous studies have already found that when a PFO is closed, whether it's following a stroke or decompression illness, migraines tend to improve in the approximately 75 percent of cases. This was the first study to enroll patients with severe migraine, a large PFO and no history of stroke or transient ischemic attacks. However, the patients did have silent brain lesions, which were revealed on magnetic resonance imaging. Source: Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Interventions, February 2009 - redOrbit

Severe migraine sufferers 'more at risk of heart attack or stroke'

"Suffering from severe migraines makes women significantly more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke, a new study suggests. Scientists found that those who experienced blurred or difficult vision during the painful headaches and carried certain genes were twice as likely to have a heart attack or stroke. The findings could indicate that doctors should monitor patients with the condition more closely. Around nine million people Britain regularly suffer from migraines, with an estimated 80 per cent thought to have an attack at least once a month. Around one in four are thought to have migraine with aura, whose symptoms can include flashing lights, black spots or zig-zag patterns in front of their eyes, as well as debilitating head pain. The researchers found that migraine with aura sufferers who also carried certain genes were twice as likely to have a heart attack or stroke as women who never got migraines" - Telegraph

Migraines linked to vein blood clots

Migraine sufferers appear to be at increased risk for stroke, and now a new study may help explain why. The study included 574 Italians age 55 and older, including 111 people with a history of migraines followed for five years. The study appears in the September 16 issue of the journal Neurology