Patent Foramen Ovale Closure and Migraine Relief

Does the closure of the Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) provide headache relief? There have been studies on this very subject done over the past couple of years. Let's take a look at results of some of them.

Dr. Markus Schwerzmann, MD, of the Swiss Cardiovascular Center Bern, in Switzerland (now at the University of Toronto) lead a study in which a group of patients who had a patent framen ovale, a previous stroke, and subsequent patent foramen ovale close. They asked these patients about their migraine frequency before and after the PFO closure to determine whether the intervention had an impact in reducing migraine headaches.

In 215 patients, the prevalence of migraine with and without aura was established using International Headache Society criteria. The impact of PFO closure on headache frequency and headache impact on daily life was investigated using the Headache Impact Test (HIT-6).

What was determined was that patients with a PFO and a history of stroke had migraine much more often than expected in the general population. If the PFO was closed for stroke prevention reasons, the frequency of migraine attacks was also reduced! This was an unexpected finding at the time of the study. After PFO closure, the frequency of headache attacks was reduced in both types of migraine (with and without aura). In migraine with aura by 54% and in migraine without aura by 62%. A decrease in the frequency of nonmigraine headaches did not reach statistical significance. The HIT-6 score improved in all groups, but significantly more for migraine than nonmigraine headache.

I think this is important news for some migraine headache sufferers. Of course, this does not apply to all headaches or migraines but it may be a huge knowledge gain in the battle! Many suffer from from headaches. Click on this link for information on the causes of daily headaches and for strategies to gain natural headache relief. Or for my favorite workout program check out the Chuck Norris Total Gym.

Tomorrow we will take a look at another study that has been done.

Here's to your good health!