The pathogenesis, clinical manifestations and treatment of migraine

  Migraine is a recurrent throbbing headache, often preceded by aura such as flashing lights, blurred vision, and numbness in the limbs, and may be accompanied by neurological and mental dysfunction. It is a progressively worsening disorder that usually develops with increasing frequency.  The pathogenesis includes: 1) vasoactive substance 5-HT theory; 2) endogenous pain control system disorder; 3) autonomic dysfunction; 4) familial aggregation and genetic theory of migraine; 5) ion channel disorder; 6) vasospasm theory.  This disease is extremely common in clinical practice, and is more common in women. It is often caused by persistent contraction of the head and neck muscles, followed by abnormalities in the vasoconstriction and diastole function of the head and neck, resulting in ischemia and hypoxia of the innervated nerves and endings of the head, and the release of pain-causing substances.  Clinical manifestations: I. Migraine without aura (generalized migraine) is the most common.  Episodes of moderate to severe throbbing headache with nausea, vomiting or photophobia. The headache is exacerbated by physical activity. The attack begins as a mild to moderate dull ache or discomfort and reaches a severe throbbing or throbbing pain after a few minutes to a few hours. About 2/3 of the headaches are one-sided or bilateral, and sometimes the pain radiates to the upper neck and shoulders. The headache lasts from 4 to 72 hours and is commonly relieved after sleep. There is a clear normal interval between attacks. If 90% of the attacks are closely related to the menstrual cycle, it is called menstrual migraine. The diagnosis can be made only after at least 5 episodes of the above-mentioned attacks, excluding various intracranial and extracranial organic diseases.  2. Migraine with aura (typical migraine) can be divided into two phases: aura and headache: 1. Aura phase: Visual symptoms are most common, such as photophobia, flashing lights in front of the eyes, sparks, or complex visual hallucinations, followed by visual field defects, dark spots, hemianopia or transient blindness. A small number of patients may develop hemianesthesia, mild hemiparesis, or speech impairment. The aura mostly lasts for 5-0 minutes.  2. Headache phase: It often appears when the aura begins to subside. The pain mostly starts on one side of the supraorbital, solar plexus, postorbital or frontotemporal area, and gradually worsens to extend to half of the head or even the whole head and neck. The headache is pulsating, throbbing or chisel-like, and gradually increases in severity and develops into persistent pain. It is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, photophobia and phonophobia. An attack may last for 1-3 days, and the headache is usually relieved after sleep, but the attack is followed by several days of tiredness and weakness. Everything is normal in between attacks.  Non-surgical treatment: Patients with milder painful headaches can be treated with rest, head acupuncture, oral analgesics and tranquilizers, and most patients will improve. During acute attacks and exacerbations, treatment may include quietness and avoidance of light, rest, and treatment with analgesics and vasoconstrictor drugs such as ergotamine. Local massage, acupuncture and oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can have some effect.  However, it has been proved that the most effective treatment for patients, in addition to psychological adjustment, dietary regimen and medication, is injection therapy during the interval of migraine, i.e., patients are injected with anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs in the corresponding focal area, which can play a therapeutic role such as analgesia and relief of local muscle spasm. Whether in the acute or chronic phase, injection therapy is an effective means to relieve pain, with an efficiency of more than 90%.  Commonly used injection treatment methods: 1, pressure point injection therapy, direct injection of anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs into the lesion area.  2, cervical paravertebral lesion injection, puncture injection of anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs in the transverse process of the 2nd cervical vertebra, has good therapeutic effect for most headache patients. The drug solution can flow into the C1-3 spinal nerve and surrounding soft tissues by spreading in the intertransverse process, exerting the therapeutic effects of anti-inflammation, analgesia and promoting the recovery of nerve function. Since the drug solution is injected directly into the lesion area, the therapeutic effect is better.  3. Cervical synovial joint injection 4. Stellate ganglion injection, which treats pain by regulating systemic endocrine function.  Minimally invasive interventional surgery: Spinal cord electrical stimulation therapy: For chronic intractable migraine that is ineffective or ineffective with conventional treatments, peripheral nerve SCS can effectively relieve the pain. The analgesic mode can be continuously adjusted outside of the body to achieve long-term effective pain control. With peripheral nerve SCS therapy, patients can reduce the use of oral analgesic drugs or even stop using them completely after surgery, avoiding the damage to the body caused by the long-term use of large amounts of drugs, and almost no side effects, so it is called “green treatment” in the medical field.