What causes menstrual headaches?

During a girl's menstrual period, changes occur in all aspects of her body. Because the hormones in the body are easily disordered during this period, headaches, abdominal pains, stomach pains, etc. may occur. These are all manifestations of dysmenorrhea, and headaches are a secondary pain. You can rest in bed, keep your body warm, and avoid cold. Menstrual pain should not be underestimated and must be taken seriously. It can easily cause other diseases and place a great burden on the body.

Clinical studies have shown that this may be related to changes in serum estrogen (a female hormone) concentrations. Due to the physiological characteristics of women, the concentration of estradiol in serum decreases before and after menstruation, causing intracranial and extracranial blood vessels and uterine blood vessels to be more sensitive to certain factors such as serotonin and other substances, thereby causing changes in vascular tension and causing headaches in some patients who are sensitive to this. After menstruation, the concentration of estradiol in serum returns to normal and the patient's headaches can also be relieved. There is another possibility that estrogen (including estradiol) can stimulate the secretion of prolactin, thereby directly or indirectly stimulating the secretion of prostaglandins. Prostaglandins act on blood vessels, causing vascular contraction and dilation. This change also shows cyclical changes due to the influence of estrogen, thereby triggering headache attacks.

symptom

Clinical symptoms

Menstrual headaches are migraines that occur during menstruation. Migraine headaches are characterized by throbbing pain on one side of the head that lasts from a few minutes to an hour and gradually intensifies until nausea and vomiting occur, at which point the pain will begin to improve. The headache is relieved in a quiet, dark environment or after sleep. Neurological and mental dysfunction may occur before or during a headache. According to studies, migraine sufferers are more likely to suffer local brain damage, which can lead to stroke, than ordinary people. The more migraines they have, the larger the area of ​​the brain that is damaged.

The diagnosis is not difficult if there is a long history of recurrent headaches, normal intervening periods, a normal physical examination, and a family history of migraine. Ophthalmoplegia can be caused by aneurysms, and arteriovenous malformations can also be associated with migraines. A head CT scan or cerebral angiography should be performed to confirm the diagnosis. Complex migraine is often caused by organic disease and should be evaluated by neuroimaging.

Occipital or temporal lobe tumors may also cause visual field defects or other visual symptoms in the early stages, but as the disease progresses, symptoms of increased intracranial pressure may eventually appear. Temporal arteritis should be excluded in elderly people with temporal-occipital headaches. The superficial temporal artery or occipital artery may become rope-like in thickness, with significantly weakened or absent pulsations, and characteristic multinucleated giant cell infiltration may be seen on arterial biopsy.

Key Features

Most patients with typical migraine have periodic attacks, which are more common in women. Before the onset of the disease, most patients may experience blurred vision, flashes, hallucinations, blind spots, eye swelling, and emotional instability. Almost all patients are afraid of light, and a unilateral headache will occur after a few minutes, mostly in the front of the head, temporal area, around the eye sockets, and temples. The headache may be localized in a certain area or extend to the entire half of the body. When the headache is severe, there may be a feeling of blood vessels pulsating or the eyeball popping out. The pain usually reaches its peak within 1 to 2 hours and lasts for 4 to 6 hours or more than ten hours. In severe cases, it can last for several days. The patient suffers from unbearable headache and is in great pain.

Common migraine Common type accounts for 80% and is relatively common. There may be no obvious precursor symptoms before the onset of the disease. Some patients also have mental disorders, fatigue, yawning, loss of appetite, general discomfort and other symptoms before the onset of the disease. Pain can also be induced in women when they have menstruation, drink alcohol, and are hungry. The headache usually worsens slowly, and the pain may be on one side or both sides, or on the entire head. The degree of pain is also milder than that of a typical migraine.

Cluster migraines are characterized by the absence of aura symptoms and each attack lasts roughly the same length of time. The headache often starts suddenly and lasts for 30 to 120 minutes and may occur multiple times a day. Clinical manifestations may include orbital swelling, tearing, conjunctival congestion, nasal congestion, sweating, and a burning sensation on the painful side of the face. In typical cases, thickening and tortuosity of the scalp blood vessels may be seen.

Migraine also includes: familial hemiplegic migraine, abdominal pain migraine, neuropsychiatric migraine, basilar artery migraine, retinal migraine, and menstrual migraine.