Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Migraine is curable!

  • Key Note Lecture
  • Published:
Neurological Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Migraine is a pathophysiologically complex disorder that arises from a neurovascular disturbance in the brain itself, and involves modulatory mechanisms in the brainstem, subcortical and cortical levels to process pain. These processing mechanisms may be abnormal in migraine, which uses otherwise normal neural pathways for pain transmission. Migraine is also an inherited dysfunction that in some individuals becomes chronic, and at various stages has shown functional neuroimaging changes. Based on further analysis of these concepts, it may be that migraine is a potentially curable disorder or disease, or at least one that can be controlled to such an extent as to prevent its acute genesis and chronic progression to the point that it no longer becomes clinically symptomatic. There are many present and potential targets to mitigate the migraine attack(s), and therefore a potential cure might exist in the future, resulting in a reduction of the expression of paroxysmal symptoms and signs, which then will fall within or near the spectrum of normal brain functions. This paper will explore the migraine diatheses to look at ways that migraine could be seen to be curable by either limiting its threshold to clinical expression or stabilizing or even reversing its pathophysiological genesis.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Qiu J (2008) In search of a migraine cure: a matter of heart and mind. Lancet Neurol 7(7):576–577

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Pietrobon D, Striessnig J (2003) Neurobiology of migraine. Nat Rev Neurosci 4:386–398. www.nature.com/reviews/neuro

    Google Scholar 

  3. Goadsby PJ, Charbit AR, Andreou AP, Akerman S, Holland PR (2009) Neurobiology of migraine. Neuroscience 161(2):327–341

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Weaver DF (2003) Epileptogenesis ictogenesis and the design of future antiepileptic drugs. Can J Neurol Sci 30:4–7

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Dodick DW, Gargus JJ (2008) Why migraine strikes. Sci Am 299(2):56–63

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Bigal ME (2008) Lipton RB putative mechanisms of the relationship between obesity and migraine progression. Curr Opin Neurol 21:301–308

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. May A (2009) New insights into headache: an update on functional and structural imaging findings. Nat Rev Neurol 5:199–209

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Weiller C, May A et al (1995) Brain stem activation in spontaneous human migraine attacks. Nat Med 1(7):658–660

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Bahra A, Matharu MS, Buchel C, Frackowiak RS, Goadsby PJ (2001) Brainstem activation specific to migraine headache. Lancet 357:1016–1017

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Welch KMA, Nagesh V, Aurora SK, Gelman N (2001) Periaqueductal gray matter dysfunction in migraine: cause or the burden of illness? Headache 41:629–637

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Bussone G, Grazzi L (2010) personal communication

  12. May A (2008) Chronic pain may change the structure of the brain. Pain 137:7–15

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Scholz J, Woolf CJ (2002) Can we conquer pain. Nat Neurosci 5:1062–1067

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Conflict of interest statement

The author declares that he has no conflict of interest related to the publication of this article.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to R. Allan Purdy.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Purdy, R.A. Migraine is curable!. Neurol Sci 31 (Suppl 1), 141–143 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-010-0308-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-010-0308-3

Keywords

Navigation