Newswise — A team of researchers reporting at the 56th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Headache Society found that migraine attack frequency is higher in women during peri-menopause and menopause than in pre-menopause. During pre-menopause, periods are typically regular. During the menopausal transition or “peri-menopause” menstrual periods become irregular and at menopause, menstrual periods stop. “Ours is the first study to demonstrate that the frequency of migraine attacks increases during the menopausal transition,” said first author Vincent T. Martin, M.D., Co-director of the University of Cincinnati Headache and Facial Pain Program and Professor of Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati.

The research was conducted as part of the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention (AMPP) Study, a longitudinal mailed questionnaire survey of 120,000 US households selected to be representative of the US population. Using data from the 2006 AMPP Study survey, women with migraine aged 35-65 years of age were eligible for these analyses. Women with migraine were classified based on headache frequency into a high frequency group if they experienced 10 or more headache days per month and into a low or moderate frequency episodic migraine group if they had less than 10 days per month. Women were also classified as premenopausal, peri-menopausal or postmenopausal (absent menstrual periods for at least 12 months) based upon responses to the questionnaire.

Of 3,603 eligible women, the mean age was 45 and 34% were premenopausal, 35% were peri-menopausal and 30% were menopausal. Frequent headache (10 or more days per month) was 50 to 60% more common among peri-menopausal (12.2%) and menopausal women (12.0%) compared with the pre-menopausal group (8.0%).

“Given that migraines tend to worsen during menstruation, it may seem paradoxical that when periods become irregular during the peri-menopause or absent during menopause that headache become more frequent,” said Richard B. Lipton, M.D., professor of Neurology and director of the Montefiore Headache Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. “We believe that both declining estrogen levels that occur at the time of menstruation as well as low estrogen levels that are encountered during the menopause are triggers of migraine in some women,” he said.

“These results validate the belief by many women that their headaches worsen during the transition into menopause,” Dr. Martin said. “We hope that our work spurs researchers to develop novel treatments for migraine during this time period given that many of the headaches encountered are thought to be hormonally triggered.”

The American Headache Society Annual Scientific meeting draws about 1,000 headache and migraine researchers and treatment specialists from around the world to hear the latest scientific and clinical information on headache and migraine. This program is four days of teaching and scientific presentations.

STUDY SUPPORT

This study was supported by a grant from Ms. Dieuw Hulk to the University of Cincinnati and the National Headache Foundation.

ABOUT MIGRAINE AND WOMEN WITH MIGRAINE

Some 38 million Americans live with migraine, more than have asthma or diabetes combined. An estimated three to seven million Americans live with chronic migraine, a highly disabling neurological disorder. Migraine can be extremely disabling and costly, accounting for more than $20 billion in direct (e.g. doctor visits, medications) and indirect (e.g. missed work, lost productivity) expenses each year in the United States. About 29 million women experience migraine, more than diabetes and asthma combined. Migraine occurs in women of all ages, but rates are highest in midlife for both episodic and chronic migraine. . Women also report greater disability, impairment and pain from migraine than men. In fact, migraine is the 4th most disabling medical disorder among women in the world.

ABOUT THE AMERICAN HEADACHE SOCIETY

The American Headache Society (AHS) is a professional society of health care providers dedicated to the study and treatment of headache and face pain. The Society's objectives are to promote the exchange of information and ideas concerning the causes and treatments of headache and related painful disorders. Educating physicians, health professionals and the public and encouraging scientific research are the primary functions of this organization. AHS activities include an annual scientific meeting, a comprehensive headache symposium, regional symposia for neurologists and family practice physicians, publication of the journal Headache and sponsorship of the AHS Committee for Headache Education (ACHE). (www.americanheadachesociety.org)