What are the features of female migraine in older age? How to fight it better after 50 years?
It is generally accepted that migraine is a problem of a young age. Since the main cause is hormonal imbalance in the body. The older the woman, the less frequent seizures, they become shorter and easier to carry. With the onset of menopause, when the activity of female sex hormones decreases, the headache goes away by itself. For this reason, menopause has long been considered a natural cure for migraine.
In recent years, views on this problem have changed. Recent studies have shown that migraines are often found at an older age.
Consider the most important points associated with this disease in women older than 50 years.
Migraine is combined with other diseases
At this age, migraine rarely exists alone. Most often, it is combined with other diseases of the nervous system. Its main companions in menopause are tension headaches and osteochondrosis. And sometimes it’s quite difficult to figure out what is the main reason for feeling unwell. Whether it is one or all three problems occur.
The fact is that in older people they can manifest themselves in a similar way. Even a migraine is often expressed only as a headache, and at the same time there are no nausea, aura, and fear of light typical of it.
Therefore, you should describe your feelings to the doctor in great detail. The line is very thin, and to understand the situation, the specialist must have enough information.
With menopause syndrome, migraine intensifies
Another feature of older migraines is the negative impact of menopausal syndrome. Fortunately, it does not occur in all women during hormonal changes. But those who are experiencing this time hard – with hot flashes, increased irritability and other troubles – should be more attentive to themselves.
If you suffer from migraine from youth, then with the onset of menopause, you should consult your doctor. You may need to adjust your treatment a bit to prevent your well-being.
HRT negatively affects migraine
The number of women taking hormone replacement therapy is growing every year. Everything is explainable: these drugs reduce the manifestations of menopausal syndrome, prevent urogenital disorders, atherosclerosis, osteoporosis. And in general, they significantly improve the quality of life after 50 years.
However, women with migraines need to be extremely careful. It is noted that prolonged use of HRT in a cyclic mode, “imitating” menstruation, can prolong the onset of seizures. In this case, it is better to replace traditional tablets containing estrogen with hormonal plasters and gels. And in the second phase of the cycle, additionally take progesterone preparations.
Or another quick option – within a year after the onset of menopause, switch to the so-called monotone intake of HRT. It does not cause menstruation and is most often used in postmenopausal women.
Some drugs are prohibited.
The “gold standard” for fighting migraines today is triptan drugs. They not only neutralize the attack, reducing its duration and strength, but are also “fast” migraine painkillers.
But some of these drugs negatively affect the heart and blood vessels. Therefore, older people should be taken with caution and only after consulting a doctor. Independence is unacceptable here.
Botox as a prevention of migraine
One of the new effective methods for preventing migraine attacks is botulinum therapy. As a rule, it is a cycle of several Botox injections into the cervical muscles.
As practice shows, this method protects against migraine attacks for a long time and is well tolerated by patients of any age. Including those over fifty.