People with MS twice as likely to get migraines

Approximately one in four people with multiple sclerosis (MS) have migraines, a recent meta-analysis has found.

Migraines often cause a severe pain or pulsing feeling on one side of the head. People also experience nausea, light and sound sensitivity, and vomiting. Sometimes they are preceded by an aura, which can feature vision changes, flashing lights and blind spots, or tingling sensations.

There haven’t been many studies looking into the prevalence of migraines in people with MS. This study retrospectively analysed 35 studies involving 27,678 MS patients.

The mean age range of the patients was 30-55.7 and most had minimal to moderate disability levels.

The overall prevalence of migraine in MS was 24%, with people with MS found to be 1.96 times more likely to get migraines than the healthy population. However, people with MS were 20% less likely to get migraine with aura than without, compared to the healthy population.

A statistical analysis found that some factors increased the chance of having migraine with MS, and these included being 45 years or older, having had MS for less than 10 years, and living in Europe.

Researchers said that more research is needed to address the burden of migraine for MS patients.