Chronic migraine often has a significant impact on a
person’s quality of life, lasting for months, years, or even decades. The
duration of chronic migraine varies from person to person.
Types of Migraine
According to the International Classification of Headache
Disorders (ICHD-3), the two most common migraine types are migraine with aura (common migraine symptoms) and migraine
without aura. Essentially the only difference is that one includes
migraine attacks that have aura and the other doesn’t.
The other common characterization of these migraine types is
episodic or chronic, which is distinguished by the frequency of headache days.
Then there are also subtypes that are distinguished by
specific types of symptoms, like migraine aura without headache, migraine with
brainstem aura (formerly called basilar-type migraine), hemiplegic migraine, and retinal
migraine
Chronic Migraine
Chronic migraine attacks are characterized by 15 or more
headache days per month for more than three months. Headache may be
migraine-like or tension-type-like, but it has the characteristics of a
migraine at least eight days per month. Chronic migraine is often disabling.
Migraine attacks can be with or without aura, and they
usually require preventive medications and behaviors to keep them under
control. After stopping medication, about half of chronic migraine patients
revert to episodic migraine and half do not.
4 Stages of a Migraine
Attack
A migraine attack can be divided into four phases:
The prodromal phase refers to the hours or even days
preceding the headache. The symptoms that occur during this phase are also
referred to as premonitory symptoms.
The aura phase refers to visual, sensory, language, or motor
symptoms that typically precede headache, but may also accompany it.
The postdrome phase, often referred to as the migraine
“hangover,” refers to the time during which symptoms of a migraine
attack persist even after the headache pain has resolved.
Certain triggers make it more likely for a migraine headache
to occur. These are some of the most common triggers: