A large prospective study recently linked migraines in women to an increased risk for heart disease, stroke and even cardiovascular death. We don’t know whether migraine is a direct cause of these problems. They are quite more likely to die from these diseases than other women not suffering from migraines, a new study has revealed.
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During the study, more than 650 women with migraines had heart attacks, while over 200 died due to heart-related problems.
The report was published May 31 in the journal BMJ. ‘It is small at the level of the individual patient, but still important at a population level’. Now, a new study has linked migraines to heart disease, especially in women.
These associations remained after adjusting for other factors that may have increased the risk for these diseases, including age, smoking status, postmenopausal hormone therapy and oral contraceptive use.
Women who have migraines are far more likely to suffer heart attacks or strokes, experts warn. The researchers followed the participants from 1989-2011 for cardiovascular events, diseases and mortality.
Around eight million Britons – three quarters of them women – have migraine, which cause dizziness, nausea and crippling pain. At the beginning of the survey, the participant women aged 25 to 42 and had not suffered from any heart disease.
The new study shows that migraines were associated with not only an increased risk for stroke, but also an increased risk for cardiovascular problems in general, Burch told Live Science. Scientists examined data from over 115,000 nurses enrolled in an ongoing study called the Nurses’ Health Study II. However, because a migraine is so common, that modest increase in risk may be much more meaningful when the population is considered as a whole, Burch added.
They then checked to see what happened to these women over the next 22 years.
Although the study shows a clear association between migraine and cardiovascular events, caution should be used when interpreting the size of the interaction and its implications for individuals.
However, these factors did not explain the raised risk of heart attack and stroke, as the researchers had already adjusted their figures to account for them. Kurth added that there are no reasons to believe that the case is limited to women’s health, Napa Valley Register reported.
Since it isn’t known why there’s this apparent risk and what can be done to reduce it, Burch said her advice is “not to make any changes to the treatment of people with migraine based on these findings”.
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As the editorial in the BMJ points out, aspirin – often used to prevent cardiovascular disease because of its blood-thinning properties – was found to actually increase the risk of heart attacks in women who had migraines with aura.
