Migraine status is the term used to describe a prolonged episode of migraine - in this case, the symptoms associated with this headache persist for more than 72 hours. It's not entirely clear why some people who experience migraines develop this phenomenon, but there are known factors that contribute to the development of a migraine state. What are the factors and what to do when a patient develops a migraine condition?
Migraine statusis a migraine headache that lasts more than 72 hours. Migraines are considered to be one of the most troublesome headaches - not without a reason, after all, due to the ailments related to them, the functioning of the patient can be really very difficult. In general, migraine headaches are relatively common, affecting up to 15% of the entire population.
A typical migraine attack lasts from 4 to 72 hours - already this duration of symptoms can definitely be considered long. However, some people who get migraines struggle with even longer-lasting ailments. Fortunately, this part is small, because it is about 1% of patients diagnosed with migraine headaches who periodically experience a problem referred to as the migraine state.
Migraine status: causes
Basically, the causes of migraine are the same as typical migraines - both genes and environmental factors are believed to influence their occurrence. It is not really known why some people develop a migraine state and others not - but there are known factors that may contribute to a prolonged migraine attack.
Among the problems and phenomena that may be considered a risk factor for migraine, there are:
- not getting enough sleep
- changes in the use of chronically taken pharmaceuticals, in particular hormone replacement therapy, hormonal contraception and antidepressants
- head injuries
- severe stress
- dehydration
- undergoing a surgical procedure (especially in the area of teeth or sinuses)
- infections (such as colds or flu)
- abuse of painkillers
Migraine status: symptoms
The basic feature of the stateis that the symptoms associated with it last longer than 72 hours. Headache may slightly change its severity, but in general, there is no need to explain to anyone that struggling with a migraine for more than 3 days may have a negative impact both on the patient's family and professional life.
The symptoms of migraine are generally analogous to those that occur in the course of a migraine attack - they may only be slightly more severe. Patients with prolonged migraines may struggle with such problems as:
- a severe headache that is typically one-sided and has a distressing, pulsating nature
- nausea
- vomiting
- hypersensitivity to various stimuli, in particular photosensitivity or sensitivity to sounds
Migraine Status: Diagnostics
In general, there are no studies that would allow a clear confirmation of the state of migraine. The diagnosis is made by finding that a person with a previous diagnosis of migraine headache has a typical duration of symptoms.
It is worth emphasizing here, however, that sometimes a patient with a suspected migraine condition is subjected to various tests that are not necessarily to confirm such a diagnosis. Their aim is also to exclude other, definitely more serious causes of the ailments experienced by the patient. The diseases that should be included in the differential diagnosis include: stroke and subarachnoid bleeding.
Migraine Status: Treatment
Treating a migraine condition is essentially the same as treating a typical migraine attack. In order to control the patient's pain, agents such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or preparations from the triptan group may be used. In a situation where the patient frequently experiences migraine, it is extremely important to select the appropriate treatment to prevent migraine attacks (for this purpose, antidepressants and valproic acid are used, among others).
It is worth emphasizing here that sometimes the migraine condition leads to the necessity to stay in the hospital. This may happen, among others when the medications taken by the patient do not in any way reduce the severity of the symptoms experienced by the patient. In such a situation, various medications - incl. triptans or steroids - they can be administered to the patient by the intravenous route.
Another situation where hospitalization may be necessary in the course of a migraine condition is significant dehydration. As already mentioned above, one of the possible symptomsvomiting may be a migraine condition - when it is very severe, there may be a need for hospital treatment and administration of fluids by intravenous route. Keeping the body well hydrated is important, among others because dehydration is a risk factor for both migraine and migraine conditions.
Migraine Status: Prevention
In general, migraines cannot be cured - the available treatment methods can only reduce the frequency of attacks, and in the case of emergency treatment, reduce the severity of symptoms associated with migraine.
Doctors, however, advise patients on what to do to reduce the risk of a prolonged episode of migraine. In this case, first of all, it is necessary to avoid factors that contribute to the onset of migraine - patients should avoid severe stress, take care of an adequate amount of sleep throughout the day, and take all painkillers only as prescribed by the doctor.
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