Migraines heat up as women approach menopause, says a new study from researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC), Montefiore Headache Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Vedanta Research.
The risk for high frequency headache, or more than 10 days with headache per month, increases by 60 per cent in middle-aged women with migraine during the perimenopause—the transitional period into menopause marked by irregular menstrual cycles—as compared to normally cycling women, according to Vincent Martin, the study’s lead author.
“Changes in female hormones such as estrogen and progesterone that occur during the perimenopause might trigger increased headaches during this time,” says Richard Lipton, MD, director, Montefiore Headache Center and professor and vice chair of neurology, and the Edwin S. Lowe Chair in Neurology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
About 12 percent of the U.S. population experiences migraine, with women suffering from them three times more frequently than men.
