Headache

Migraine Headaches

Signs and Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment

Signs and Symptoms

Migraine is the most common cause of disabling headache, affecting 35 million Americans. About 15 percent of women and 6 percent of men experience migraine. The condition is often hereditary; if you have migraines, it is very likely that another family member suffers from them too.

Migraine is characterized by recurrent attacks, with pain often on one side of the head that may be throbbing or pounding, accompanied by other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light and sound, and to head movement. Although migraine can occur at any time of day or night, they tend to affect people in the morning.

Episodes can last from several hours to several days and often are disabling. During the attack, pain may travel from one part of the head to another and may radiate down the neck into the shoulder. Scalp tenderness occurs in the majority of patients during or after an attack.

Signs and symptoms of migraine headaches include:

• Throbbing or pounding pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Scalp tenderness
• Sensitivity to light or sound
• Worsening of pain with movement
• Visual disturbances, such as flashes of light or blind spots in your vision
• Abnormal body sensations, called paresthesias, such as tingling, numbing or prickling
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness or vertigo

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Medical Center.
Last updated September 18, 2008