My Experience with Patent Foramen Ovale

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It was around October - November, 2007 when I became aware of the relationship between a PFO and migraine headaches. It was in this same time frame that I started visiting Dr. Teresa Latendress, a naturopathic physician from the Hickory, NC area. Dr. T. also brought up that I might have a PFO.

This was just too coincidental I thought. I saw this article in the back pages of a newspaper and then Dr. T. mentioning this to me within a couple of short weeks. Wow, I thought, this has got to be my problem.

I threw all financial caution to the wind and immediately made an appointment with a cardiologist to be checked. I didn't even check with my insurance company on coverage, I was so sure this was the resolve to my 40 year experience with headaches that I didn't care what I had to pay to get it fixed.

I went in for my first appointment with the cardiologist in Lincolnton, NC. We had a nice discussion. She was questioning me severely, asking why I thought that there was a connection between PFO and migraines. I laid it on the line to her. I have had headaches for 40 years, I have not found a fix, I have done research into the subject on the web and have found that many doctors feel there is a link between the two. I showed her some of the articles that I printed out and nearly had to force her to read them.

After a long pause she admitted to me that a relationship between PFO and migraine headaches had been suspected for a while. She said there was no "proof" of it yet and therefore she wasn't able to actually discuss it. But, she did agree to have me tested for a PFO. I think she realized that there was enough evidence to back my theory up.

At the same time we discussed methods of dealing with my insurance company. She agreed to put on her report that we were checking for a PFO because there was a history of stroke in my family (which there is). This way she was confident that the big boys with the power, money and influence (insurance companies) wouldn't deny payment. She told me that if she reported that we were checking for a PFO as a cause of migraine headaches all payment would probably be denied.

What did I find out? That's the subject of my next blog.

Natural Headache Relief, Causes of Daily Headaches, MSG and Headaches are all discussed in the FeelingOuststanding.com web page. If you suffer from headaches, check them out. The information may be very helpful.

Here's to your health, here's to feeling outstanding!

Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) Closure and Migraine Relief

A British double-blind study designed to evaluate the effect of PFO close on Migraine called the MIST (Migraine Intervention with STARFlex Technology) was completed.

Doctors Peter Wilmhurst and Andrew Dowson jointly presented the results at the American College of Cardiology's 55th annual Scientific, Late Breaking Clinical Trials Sessions. Dr Wilmhurst is Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Shrewsbury. Dr. Dowson is Director of the King's Headache Service, Kings College Hospital, London.

A PFO is a common heart defect that is a risk factor for migraine headaches in some patients. The PFO allows venous blood, unfiltered and unmanaged by the lungs, to enter the arterial blood circulation. The unfiltered venous blood may contain elements that can trigger migraines in some patients.

The results of this study, which tested 147 patients indicate an approximate 37% reduction in Migraine burden (number of headaches multiplied by the length, in hours of headache) in those patients who received the testing procedure (a STAR implant to close the PFO).

Dr. Dowson commented,
"For the first time we can see trends in a prospective study to suggest that PFO closure may be an effective way to treat certain types of migraine. A reduction in headache burden for a patient with sever migraine may allow that individual to gain more control and lead a more fulfilling and productive life. The key now will be establishing the criteria that will help to determine which patients should be referred to the invenventional cardiologist for further treatment."

This can a a huge breakthrough for migraine headache victims that cannot determine the causes of their frequent headaches. Headaches are miserable and painful. There are natural solutions to many headache problems. MSG is a huge contributor to headaches and goes by many hidden names. But sometimes there is no apparent cause, this may be a case of a PFO.

There we have in on PFO and migraine headaches. There appears to be a definite correlation between the two and the closure has shown a reduction in headache burden for a high percentage of those tested. Let's hope that further research takes place and this becomes a real consideration for those who suffer from the drastic affects of frequent migraine headaches.

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Here's to your health, here's to feeling outstanding. Never give up, never quit trying!

Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) Closure and Migraine Relief

We have previously noted a correlation between PFO presence and migraine headaches. Yesterday we saw one study that indicated the closure of the PFO to reduce frequency and severity of migraines.

Also, a link between migraine and stroke risk has been seen. One hypothesis is being investigated is that patients with migraine more often have a PFO and PFO make them more prone to stroke.

Let's take a look at another study that was performed to see if the closure of the PFO has any effect on headaches. In 2004 two groups of researchers from Belgium and Switzerland studies whether percutaneous closure (closing the PFO by a technique that does not require a major surgical procedure) would lead to few Migraines.

The Belgian group gave a questionnaire was given to people after PFO closure. The Swiss group gave a questionnaire both before and after the closure. Frequency of migraine was decreased in both studies after PFO closure.

These studies are critical. If PFO closure proves effective for Migraine prevention, that makes PFO a potentially correctable migraine trigger! Tomorrow we can take a look at another study that compared Migraine patients who had PFO closure with those who didn't. This could be great news to people who suffer headaches and they cannot figure out why. After we look at this next study I will share my experience when I was examined for a PFO.

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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!

Diagnosis and Treatment of PFO - Part 1

I think it has been pretty well established that individuals with a Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) are more prone to migraine headaches than than those without a PFO. (For discussion on what a PFO is and studies related to this point see the previous three postings related to the subject).

PFO can be detected by echocardiogram. In some cases the patient is asked to cough or perforn the Valsalva maneuver to increase pressure in the right atrium. This can increase the flow of blood from the right to left atrium. Transesophageal echo can provide a closer and more detailed view of the PFO.

People with PFO do not need any treatment if there are no associated problems, such as a stroke. Patients who have had a stroke may be placed on some type of blood thinner to prevent recurrent stroke.

For some patients closure of PFO may be recommended. Does closure of PFO provide headache relief at all. We will look at that beginning tomorrow.

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Stay tuned to see whether the PFO closure has helped people gain headache relief or not.

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Patent Foramen Ovale - Correlation with Headaches - Part 2

"Patients with a history of stroke and patent foramen ovale have a higher prevalence of migraine with aura than the general population" (Neurology Review.com, Feb04). In a separate paper, the same investigators reported interim findings of an ongoing study examining the prevalence of patent foramen ovale and ischemic brain lesions in patients with migraine compared with healthy controls. Once again the data suggests an increased prevalence of patent foramen ovale and migraine patients.

From the same article in neurology review Dr. Markus Schwerzmann, M.D. of the Swiss Cardiovascular Center is quoted as follows" "What we found was first, patients with a patent forman ovale and a history of stroke had migraine much more often than we expect in the general population. Of the 215 patients, 48 (22%) suffered from migraine...compared to an expected 10%- 12% in the general European population."

In an interim report of a second study Dr. Schwerzmann noted that the patent foramen ovale was present in 25 of 57 patients with migraine with aura (44%).

Another study that was conducted by BTU Doctors Peter Wilmhurst and Andrew Dowson (study conducted in the United Kingdom) enrolled 147 patients who suffered from migraine. Of those patients over 60% had a right to left shunt, a heart defect, which allows blood to cross from the right to the left chambers of the heart, bypassing the lungs. Of those patients, almost 40% had a moderate or large to moderate PFO.

With the studies that have been done, I think that a correlation can be made between migraine and the PFO. This obviosuly, is not the only cause of headaches. Click here to get more information about the causes of headaches and MSG and headaches. Tomorrow we will begin to take a look at what can be done to PFO victims.

I hope that all is well. Look for people to help you out tomorrow, expect it. Here's to Feeling Outstanding.

Migraine Headacches and PFO, Correlation with Headaches?

Before we get into the question of whether there is a correlation or relationship between the PFO and headaches I think a little more description of the PFO is in order. Referring to the picture on the right

• The septum is the muscular wall separating the heart into the left and right sides.
• The atrial septum is the wall separating the atria (the two upper chambers).
• The ventricalar septum is the wall separating the ventricles (the two lower chambers).

The foramen ovale is a small hole located in the atrial septum that is used during fetal circulation to speed up the travel of blood through the heart. When in the womb, a baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, it relies on the mother to provide it from the placenta through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Therefore, blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side through the foramen ovale and skip the trip to the baby's lungs.

Normally the foramen ovale closes at birth when increased blood pressure on the left side of the heart forces the opening to close. If the atrial septum does not close correctly, it is called a patent foramen ovale (PFO). This usually work like a flap valve, opening during conditions when there is more pressure inside the chest. If the pressure is great enough, blood may travel from the right atrium to the left atrium. If there is a clot or particles in the blood traveling in the right side of the heart, it can cross the PFO, enter the left atrium and travel out of the heart to the brain, possibly causing a stroke, or a coronary artery, or a migraine headache.

According the the Cleveland Clinic web page migraine headaches are more common in patients with PFO. Neurology seconds this by saying "Research has shown a higher prevalence of PFO among Migraineurs. (April 2004:62:1399-1041)"

What kind of tests have been done to come to this conclusion? Does closing the PFO make any difference? We will examine some studies done on the PFO and Migraines beginning with my next post.

There can be Natural Headache Relief.

Check out the Causes of Daily Headaches web page. The author blows the whistle on the common over-the-counter headache medications in use today. Does today's headache medication cause tomorrow's headache? What is an analgesic rebound headache. This page may be a shock for some, but not for those who have suffered the rebound headache syndrome.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding. Never give up!