Migraine and Stroke Risk

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Dr. Anne MacGregor, director of clinical research at the City of London Migraine Clinic and acting general secretary of the International Headache Society (IHS), commented, "There is no doubt that there is a relationship between migraine and stroke, and that the risk is greater with aura migraines and women on the pill. That is indisputable... We do not want people with migraine to think they are at high risk of having a stroke... The absolute numbers are very small. You are far more likely to get a stroke from smoking. That's the big risk factor."²

To put all of this into better perspective, I went to Dr. Fred Sheftell, founder and director of the New England Center for Headache in Stamford, Connecticut, and a well known researcher and author in the field.³ He provided the statistics for those without Migraine disease and compared them to those for Migraineurs:

"The average stroke prevalence in women in the general population is 9 per 100,000, which represents absolute risk.
If patients with migraine have an average of 2.16 times greater risk that's about 20 per 100,000, still a very low absolute risk.
On oral contraceptives, the absolute risk is about 75 per 100,000.
Of course the greatest risk factor is smoking!!"

What this study does not indicate is that Migraineurs should panic. As with any disease, we need to know any risks Migraine presents so we are prepared and can do our part to take care of ourselves and try to avoid complications.

When to seek immediate care:

As we've said before, if you have the worst headache or Migraine of your life, call your doctor or go to the emergency room. Extreme head pain can be a symptom of a stroke. Even though she was suffering from an aneurysm, Sharon Stone said it best, "If you have the worst headache you've ever had, go to the hospital because by the time you get to the hospital, you're as far gone as you wanna be."
If you experience numbness or paralysis that you have not experienced with a Migraine before, call your doctor or go to the emergency room.
If you lose consciousness during a Migraine, it hasn't happened to you during previous Migraines, and you haven't discussed it with your doctor, call your doctor or go to the emergency room.
If you have a severe, unremitting Migraine for more than 72 hours, it is Status Migrainous, and you should call your doctor or go to the emergency room.
Obviously, it's impossible to predict all circumstances under which we might need to call our doctor or go to the emergency room. If your Migraine seems out of control and frightening, it's better to get it checked out and be safe.