What is a migraine aura or a migraine with aura?
A migraine aura is a warning sign that a migraine headache is about to begin. It usually involves visual disturbances that occur in just one eye and range from flashing lights and zigzag lines to blind spots and blurred vision.
Trouble speaking and numbness can also be part of a migraine aura. Migraine auras also can be sensory or olfactory as well.
Many migraine auras last less than an hour before the head pain starts.
This is known as migraine with aura.
How common is migraine with aura? Less than a third of migraine sufferers experience aura.
Here's what you need to know about migraines with and without auras:
What is a migraine?
Migraine is a neurological condition that is characterized by often incapacitating symptoms including severe, throbbing and recurring pain that’s usually centered on one side of the head.
Other disabling symptoms of a migraine are nausea, vomiting, dizziness, tingling or numbness in the extremities or face, and extreme sensitivity to sound, light, touch and smell.
Migraine affects about 1 billion men, women and children worldwide and approximately 40 million Americans.
Migraine headaches can last up to three days and produce moderate to severe pain.
Migraines are more common between the ages of 18 and 44, and they affect women disproportionately. 18% of American women suffer from migraines, compared to 6% of men and 10% of school-age children.
There is a strong genetic link for migraines, with about 90% of sufferers reporting a family history of these headaches.
Migraine is a "diagnosis of exclusion," which means it is reached by a process of elimination since there is no test or biomarker to confirm its presence.
Just as every person is unique, so are migraine headaches. Migraines differ from person to person, and migraines also can present in different ways and with different symptoms in the same person.
What is a migraine aura and are they dangerous?
Migraines fall into two basic categories: migraine with aura and migraine without aura.
A migraine that begins with head pain (without visual disturbances or other symptoms of aura) is called migraine without aura.
The majority of migraine sufferers do not experience an aura beforehand, so they receive no early warning of the impending headache until the pain begins.
Migraine aura can be concerning for a couple of reasons. Firstly, migraine aura can be a sign of restricted blood supply to brain cells and, in rare cases, the symptoms of a migraine with aura are the same as a transient ischemic attack (or mini-stroke).
How to reduce migraine triggers
There are no medications specifically for migraine aura, and no dependable way to prevent it. However, there are steps sufferers can take to try to control their migraines.
Lifestyle changes (also known as complementary treatment) that eliminate migraine triggers often can help.
Migraines also can be triggered by environmental factors that can be controlled to one degree or another. These include bright or flickering lights, pollution, changes in altitude, air pressure, strong smells and motion sickness.
Weather changes — such as high or low humidity, sudden or drastic changes in temperature or barometric pressure — also can bring on a migraine headache.
In women, fluctuations in hormones related to pregnancy, oral contraceptives, menstruation and menopause can trigger migraines.
Alcohol and caffeine are two substances that she recommends be limited.
In addition to eliminating migraine triggers, simple relaxation techniques are often recommended for controlling migraines. These include biofeedback and other forms of relaxation training that can reduce stress that may act as a trigger for migraines.
Regular aerobic exercise like cycling, walking and swimming can also help reduce tension and prevent migraines.
SEE RELATED: Ocular and visual migraines: What's the difference?
Treatments for migraine / how to reduce or get rid of migraine aura
Several medications are available to help relieve the pain of a migraine headache (but, as mentioned above, these will not usually eliminate a migraine aura). These medications are categorized as abortive treatment and preventive treatment.
Abortive (also called acute or pain-relieving) medications are over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription drugs that are taken at the first sign of a migraine to stop or reduce pain and other symptoms.
For sufferers of migraine with aura, these medications should be taken as soon as the aura begins.
Designed to work quickly to alleviate nausea and vomiting, the sooner these medications are taken, the more effective they can be at treating the migraine.
Abortive medications are varied and can be taken by mouth, skin patch, nasal spray or self-injection.
Abortive migraine therapy includes prescription triptans, dihydroergotamines (ergots) and narcotic opioids containing codeine.
The common OTC pain relievers aspirin or ibuprofen, and migraine relief medications that combine caffeine, aspirin and acetaminophen, also can provide relief.
Preventive migraine medications are taken daily to help prevent migraines from occurring. This therapy can reduce the number of attacks, lessen the intensity of pain and help prevent the onset of future migraines.
Preventive migraine therapy includes prescription high blood pressure medications like beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers, antidepressants, anti-seizure medications, and botulinum toxin.
Some migraine sufferers end up taking both abortive and preventive medications for maximum control of their migraine attacks.
As with other medical conditions, treatment decisions for migraines (with or without migraine aura) should be made in consultation with your primary health care provider.
