| Q: |
What does the future hold for migraine sufferers?
| | A: |
Migraine remains underdiagnosed in the US, where just half of
some 28 million people with migraine have been properly diagnosed.
Failure to recognize migraine and its misdiagnosis as another headache
type are the most common reasons for this. Many migraine sufferers have
been diagnosed with tension or sinus headache because their symptoms do
not fit the regular criteria. Studies show that pain on both sides of
the head, nonthrobbing pain, and pain at the back of the head and neck
are common in migraine, but as these are generally associated with
tension (stress) headaches, this diagnosis may be made instead. The
medical community and the public need to be better educated about
migraine and migraine sufferers.
|
| Q: |
Why are men generally not diagnosed as having migraine?
| | A: |
Studies have shown men are associated with a lower probability of
being diagnosed with migraine. Men are reluctant to seek healthcare for
any medical problem, and headaches are often assumed to be caused by
stress.
|
| Q: |
What are the economic costs of migraine?
| | A: |
Migraine is a chronic illness that results in significant
suffering and economic loss. It has been estimated that migraine affects
nearly 6.2 million workers employed outside the home and results in
lost productivity valued at 1.4 billion dollars per year. Studies show
workdays lost annually to migraine ranging from 1.4 to 4, but none of
the studies consider the impaired productivity of individuals who
continue to work with a migraine attack. Experts estimate the annual
indirect cost of migraine in the US to be between 1.4 and 17.2 billion
dollars.
|
| Q: |
Will we ever have a fail-safe test for migraine?
| | A: |
I am sure that someday we will have a diagnostic test for
migraine. Researchers have tried to find a biological marker on DNA but
have found little, so far, that seems promising. The development of
imaging studies may provide the first breakthrough. At present, the
diagnosis is made by asking the headache sufferer about his or her
history of headaches and the family history.
|
| Q: |
What are the recent advances in migraine?
| | A: |
Recent advances in the study of disease mechanisms and diagnosis
have given us a better understanding of what causes migraine, and we are
better able to choose the right medications to treat migraine attacks,
rather than just treating the pain of a headache. The current theory of
the multimechanism of migraine allows us to target different areas of
the brain causing the attack. The combination of triptan and
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) enables people to stop
attacks more effectively.
|
| Q: |
Are there new treatments for migraine prevention?
| | A: |
Researchers are now turning their attention to migraine
prevention. For years, medications developed to treat other diseases
have been used to treat migraine. As we discover how the illness of
migraine progresses and what may make certain individuals more
vulnerable to its progression, we will be able to find improved
treatment options. The future does hold much hope for the migraine
sufferer.
|
| Q: |
What is the ultimate goal for migraine treatment?
| | A: |
Now that we understand migraine to be a progressive disease,
achieving a pain-free outcome is the ultimate treatment goal of
patients. A migraine attack must be treated early and aggressively to
achieve the pain-free outcome within 2 hours. The longer an attack
lasts, the more vulnerable you are to another attack.
|
|
