There are several types of migraines that cause discomfort to a person. Each of them has its own symptoms and causes. A common form is hemiplegic migraine. With it, a person has unpleasant sensations. Read more about the causes and treatment of this condition in the article.
Hemiplegic migraine - what is it? This is a disease in which discomfort is manifested with numbness on one side of the body. This form of the disease is considered rare and is usually inherited. There are some peculiarities of her treatment.
Reasons
Hemiplegic migraine occurs due to:
- The genetic factor. If at least one parent has had such attacks, then it is likely that their children will have them too. Familial hemiplegic migraine is one of the most common.
- Hormonal disorders. Most of the patients with this disease are women. Painful sensations develop with disorders of the endocrine system, hormonal disorders during menopause, regular use of contraceptives.
- Chronic fatigue. Migraineappears from private stress, overstrain, insomnia, which weakens the body, reduces vascular tone.
- Bad habits. Alcohol, smoking, overeating food with a lot of preservatives can also cause this disease.
- Loud noises, bright lights, bad smells.
About the clinical picture
Usually severe pain lasts from 15 minutes to several hours. When the attack lasts for several days, migraine status appears. With migraine with aura, it is manifested by symptoms-harbingers:
- Deteriorating performance, fatigue appears.
- Flies flicker before the eyes, dizziness is felt.
- There is nausea, vomiting.
- Probably a manifestation of arterial hypertension.
- There is muscle weakness, twitching of the limbs.
- Feels anxious or panicked.
- Irritable or depressed.
Harbingers are capable of lasting from several minutes to several hours. Hemiplegic migraine is similar in symptoms to a brain stroke. But with a stroke, limb paralysis can be irreversible.
Signs
What are the symptoms of hemiplegic migraine? The disease manifests itself as follows:
- There are severe headaches of a pulsating type that appear from one part of the skull and facial area. The syndrome can affect the eye sockets, shoulder area, and also give into the shoulder blade.
- Appeareye pain, visual system disorders, blurred vision.
- Sometimes, due to severe pain, there is a short-term memory loss, impaired consciousness, delirium, hallucinations, distortion of smell.
- Vomiting attacks appear when eating any food, and this does not alleviate the condition.
- In addition to standard syndromes, hemiplegia or paralysis of the limbs occurs. Sometimes the opposite part can be withdrawn.
The main symptom of hemiplegic migraine is the appearance of pain in the head, with which neurological disorders may appear. These symptoms persist after the pain is gone and may last for several weeks.
ICD-10 hemiplegic migraine is included in section G43.1. The international classification is used by physicians around the world to complete documentation.
Diagnosis
How is hemiplegic migraine detected? Paralysis of the extremities is a sign of a stroke, therefore, in order to exclude this ailment, an examination of computed tomography of the brain is required. Magnetic resonance imaging will allow you to establish the state of the vessels of the brain, muscle tissue. Symptoms of the disease can hide dangerous ailments: stroke, tumor, vascular disorders. Laboratory tests for hormonal status are performed to determine the cause of the pain that is accompanied by paralysis.
How to treat?
Treatment of hemiplegic migraine in every caseindividual. The method of therapy is chosen by the doctor based on the causes and history. The disease is difficult to treat with drugs. Usually a lot of time is spent on choosing the right treatment. An effective method is the implementation of prophylaxis before attacks. To do this, it is necessary to avoid provoking factors. Often, these factors are not so easy to identify, so they cannot be avoided.
Often doctors prescribe drug therapy. To do this, appoint:
- Anspasmodics. The appearance of the disease is associated with spasms of blood vessels, when the lumen narrows between their walls, there is a violation of blood circulation and nutrition of the brain. With the help of myotropic antispasmodics, it will be possible to get rid of muscle spasms, and the pain stops. Dangerous include such means as "No-shpa", "Drotaverin", "Papaverin". Combined medicines with antispasmodic and analgesic properties are used. These are Spazmalgon, Kombispasm, Novigan. It is advisable to choose products with a combined composition in order to eliminate disease syndromes.
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Effective drugs such as Diclofenac, Naproxen, Ibuprofen, Indomethacin. These medicines should be taken at the beginning of painful sensations.
- Analgesics. They have an analgesic effect. The most popular include Analgin, Ketorolac, Amigrenin, Sumamigren.
- Beta blockers. Often doctors prescribe "Propranolol", which is normally tolerated by people, but the remedy cannot be used for respiratory problems.problems, such as bronchial asthma. Beta-blockers are also used for prevention.
- Calcium antagonists. Used less often than other medicines. These are Verapamil, Nicardipine.
- Triptans. The effective ones include "Sumatriptan", "Imigran", "Trimigren", "Electriptan". Due to their narrowing effect, triptans are considered among the best in the treatment of migraine. They also help with associated symptoms - photosensitivity, sound anxiety, nausea.
Consequences
If seizures are not eliminated, their number can increase, and this leads to serious complications:
- Status migraine requiring hospital treatment.
- A migraine stroke that affects multiple areas of the brain and leaves a mark for life.
- A seizure that can cause epilepsy.
Many people fail to live in peace between attacks, as they expect a recurrence of the disease. They may be depressed, performance is deteriorating. There is also a violation of sleep, loss of appetite. As a result, colds and viral diseases appear more often, aggression occurs.
To avoid such complications, you need to see a doctor in a timely manner. It is necessary to follow the recommendations provided by the specialist. This will alleviate the condition and prevent repeated attacks.
Prevention
Prophylactic measures should be prescribed by a specialist if attacks occur frequently, more than 2 times a month, and alsoif their duration is more than 3 days. Thanks to drug therapy, it will be possible to prevent not only pain, but also neurological pathologies that lead to disorientation. So that the attacks are not long and frequent, an appointment is prescribed:
- Beta blockers.
- Cure for depression.
- Anticonvulsants.
- Calcium channel blockers.
- Serotonin antagonists.
As a preventive measure, provoking factors - stress, overwork, bad habits - should not be allowed. Negative emotions often lead to headaches, especially migraines. Reduce the frequency of spasms with the help of a special diet, in which you can not eat foods that lead to seizures. Foods with tyramine should not be consumed: spices, chocolate, cheese, caffeinated drinks.
It is important to follow the correct daily routine, the alternation of sleep and rest. Oversleeping (sleeping more than 9 hours) is also considered harmful, as is lack of sleep, and therefore can lead to painful sensations. You also need to drink as much water as possible. When the first signs of an attack occur, exclusion of irritants is required. Therefore, they turn off the music, turn off the lights, change activities, and apply a cold compress to the forehead and temples.
Conclusion
Completely cure this disease will not work. Means of modern medicine can only prevent seizures and reduce the frequency of their occurrence. The effect of treatment depends on the doctor, the right means and the therapy regimen.
