Their annual rate of heart attack, stroke, or death from cardiovascular disease was slightly higher (3.4 per 1,000 women) than the rate among women who had migraines without aura or no migraines (2.1 per 1,000 women). Just 5% of the participants reported having migraine with aura. Researchers tracked the women's health until 2018. All were ages 45 or older and had no evidence of cardiovascular disease when the study began in the early 1990s. The latest evidence comes from a 2020 study in JAMA of nearly 28,000 women who were part of the Women's Health Study. 'Migraines tend to be most common in younger women, and their baseline risk of stroke is quite low in the first place,' Dr. Christopher Anderson, chief of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

But migraine sufferers should interpret this risk in context, says Dr. And both have long been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, especially stroke. Both versions are known as migraine with aura or classic migraine. Usually, the aura occurs soon before the headache, although some people experience just the aura without a headache. And up to a third of migraineurs experience odd visual or physical sensations known as an aura (see 'What is a migraine aura?'). During a migraine attack, people often feel nauseated and are sensitive to light and sound.

Some people who get these intense, throbbing headaches may face a heightened risk of stroke and heart attack.Ībout one in six adults in the United States reports having migraines, but these debilitating headaches are three times more prevalent in women.

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