Migraine Study

[clay_from_nj]

I've seen it discussed here before, that many see a correlation between our heart issues and migraines. Forgive me if this has come up before, but according to this research study, the link is real: Prevalence of Migraine Headaches in Patients With Congenital Heart Disease.

(I have had migraine with aura since my teens (now aura without headache, at age 46) and have had ASD and BAV, both now repaired.)

ASD repair at age 10, Deborah Heart and Lung.
AVR with ATS Open Pivot, 9/21/12, St. Joseph, Denver.

46 years old and still ticking, except for the PVC missed beats.

 

[ottagal]

Interesting...do recall one member who posted a poll to see how many of us suffered from migraines.
I have had ocular migraines for the past 5 years.

 

[healthandhope]

I've had aura with no or minimal headache since 4th grade. I am now 60 . They seem to come in clusters, one every day or few days for a couple weeks then maybe none for months. interesting for sure.

 

[Janie]

Interesting! I have headaches since my 20's but never put the two together. I get the floaties in my eyes then BAM a full blown headache. Ibuprofen used to help but lately, not so much. My mom had heart issues but we didn't really know until she was in A-Fib before cataract surgery at age 80. Growing up she always had a headache and she'd fall asleep at the drop of a dime. Ended up with a pacemaker but she lived to be 87. I think we are all just better educated about heart stuff and it's not just clogged arteries and heart attacks that mean "heart disease". Lots more to it.

 

[JeffM]

Thanks for your post and for sharing the study. I am not very good at interpreting these things and don't really know if the total numbers would be considered a representative sampling nor do I know how reliable information gathered from a phone survey is in the long run. That said, when I add that study to what I've been reading in this forum for the last 4.5 years, it's hard not to see an association between congenital heart disease and migraines. In my case, I have suffered from migraines since I was 18. Their severity has diminished but their frequency has increased. I have noticed a particular increase in short bouts of double vision and vertigo since my Aortic Valve Replacement surgery. Incidentally, my mother has a replaced bicuspid aortic valve and she too suffered from migraines. Over her life span her pattern of migraine severity and frequency has been similar to mine and her valve was replaced at about age 50, similar to mine....for what it's worth.

 

[Rachel]

I'm also not very good at extracting/interpreting the information I need out of medical journals, but I'll chime in too with my own experience. I started having aura without headaches since my late twenties, I'd have about 6 per year and chalked it up to hormones. They decreased some as I got older but then right after my valve replacement I had them probably every other day for a week or two.

Now I still get them especially if I drink a glass of red wine....I'm switching to white!

After reading posts here, (and the article) I'm pretty sure there is a connection between CHD and the migraines!

Rachel

 

[MarkU]

Interesting study. Thanks for sharing.
It seems consistent with my personal experience. I was experiencing an increasing frequency of ocular migraines prior to my AVR twelve years ago. At the time they seemed to be triggered by fatigue and/or stress. My blood pressure was also elevated prior to my surgery and I suspected that was a contributing factor. Since my surgery they have become very infrequent; maybe one or two a year.
Mark

 

[normofthenorth]

It isn't clear to me exactly where a typical VR.org person -- e.g., a BAVer like me -- fits into this study. Is a (congenitally) Bicuspid Aortic Valve considered CHD = Congenital Heart Disease/Defect? I don't think we'd be considered CHDers by the authors of the study. If we were, we'd mostly be in the "no shunt" subgroup, unless we also had a PFO (patent foramen ovale) or something similar. The "no shunt" subgroup did have a Migraine prevalence almost as abnormally high as the groups with shunts (= gaps, I think) in their interior heart walls.

I THINK the study suggests that Migraine incidence drops significantly when these in-heart shunts are repaired. But my recollection of our little survey results here suggests that our Migraine experience was all over the block: Some AVRers with Migraine had Migraine relief post-AVR, some had more Migraines, others had no significant change.

 

[Janet UK]

I'm a 60 year old female and had a Mitral Valve Replacement 4 months ago with a St Jude bi-leaflet Mechanical Heart Valve.
Prior to surgery I was a chronic Migraine sufferer which could only be relieved by Maxalt or Imigram (both from the Sumatriptan group of drugs).
The Migraine developed in my 30's and plagued my life, as they happened 2 -3 x a week. I saw neurologists, attended Migraine clinics etc and had to put up with the problem managed by the medication.
My Mitral Valve Disease was picked up last January when a Dr heard a loud murmur and referred me for an urgent cardio appt.
I mentioned the Migraine to my Cardiologist and Cardiac Surgeon and they were sceptical that my valvular heart disease could cause migraine.
Since the surgery I do not get migraine. Only the odd headache but nothing like migraine that I used to get. There must have been a link between my heart disesase and migraine.
My Cardiologist and Cardiac Surgeon shrug their shoulders and don't know why this should be. In fact my surgeon thought my migraines would likely be bad straight after surgery.
Anyway this has been a positive outcome for me so I am pleased about it!

 

[BostonJohn]

This is very interesting. I have been getting migraines, with aura, for several years now, and they seem to have intensified recently. Coincidentally (or not) I have recently been told that I am on the verge of needing surgery at the same time that the migraines have occurred with greater frequency and intensity.

 

[Jamey T]

I have had migraines with aura since my early teens. I had BAV, and since my surgery just a little over a year ago, I have had 2 auras, with no headache.