Rare Migraine Headaches

Not all migraines are created equal. While most migraines are typical, distinguished only by whether they are accompanied by aura or not, there are actually some quite rare migraine types that you should be aware of.

Basilar Artery migraines

The basilar artery migraine is very rare, but potentially very dangerous. It was previously thought to occur almost exclusively in teen aged girls and young women, but later was acknowledged to occur in both sexes and all ages. It may lead to strokes or transient ischemic attack (TIA).

The migraine starts off with loss of balance, slurred speech, double vision, partial vision loss, poor muscle coordination, dizziness, vertigo, severe vomiting, numbness (on one or both sides of the body), weakness, and general confusion. These symptoms continue for up to forty-five minutes with the onset of the severe headache.

Opthalmoplegic migraines

The dysfunction of the occulo-motor and abducens nerves can induce opthalmoplegic migraines. Those with this migraines suffer pain around the eye. The muscles surrounding the eye may paralyze. Other accompanying symptoms include droopy eyelid, double vision, enlarged pupil, and vision problems. Usually common among children, these migraines often last for extended periods of time, sometimes as long as months at a time. Therefore a complete physical exam is necessary to rule out the possibility of more serious disorders.

Ocular migraines

This is a rare type of migraine—also known as a retinal migraine—noted for repeated vision disturbances that includes loss of vision in just one eye. This loss of vision can be partial or complete and usually lasts less than an hour. Once these visual disturbances subside, you may be left with a dull ache behind the eye that lost vision. In some cases, your entire head may feel pain.

Hemiplegic migraines

Hemiplegic migraines are usually genetic in nature, but they have been known to occur in people with no family history of migraines. They are more prevalent in children than adults. Hemiplegic migraines usually develop during childhood. Victims experience temporary paralysis on one side of the body (hemiplegia) and slurred speech. The hemiplegia may develop on the same side of the headache. It is very uncommon for hemiplegia to be permanent. Other associated symptoms include blurred vision and vertigo. About ten to ninety minutes later, the headache starts. Unfortunately, the hemoplegia does not necessarily subside when the head pain goes away.

Status migrainous

Status migrainous is a rare migraine that lasts longer than seventy-two hours. It often lead to more serious problems such as dehydration. Patients often require hospitalization to relieve the severe pain and nausea. Certain pain medications, or even medication withdrawal, often trigger status migrainous. Should you find yourself with status migrainous, the best step is immediately get to the emergency room where treatment will consist of fluids through an IV and pain medication.

Abdominal migraines

Abdominal migraines are not common. However, they are the most common migraine headaches for children and toddlers. They are different from typical migraine headaches because they cause stomach pain except the headache. Other usual migraine symptoms such as nausea and vomiting appear in abdominal migraines. Children who often outgrow the abdominal part, but remain afflicted with traditional headache migraines. Abdominal migraines are often treated with anti-convulsant drugs like propranolol (Inderal and Deralin).

Women-only migraines

While the majority of migraine sufferers are women, some migraines are specifically associated with the hormonal oscillations only experienced by women. Migraines are commonly linked to menstruation and, in addition, many women only suffer migraines when they are taking an oral contraceptives. Hormone replacement therapy has been related to migraines in women who are undergoing menopause or are already past menopause. Paradoxically, many older women have hormone replacement therapy related headaches, while other women who suffered through pre-menopausal migraines report their cessation following menopause.

Most of these migraines should be considered very rare and highly unlikely to develop, yet not serious enough for you to seek an immediate physician examamination except for chronic migraine headaches. If your migraines become severe, you can consider natural migraine headaches remedy such as homeopathy or clinical trial medications such as Botox.