Stress today ‘could lead to migrane tomorrow’

MONITORING life’s hassles on a daily basis might be able to predict migraine attacks, scientists believe.

Researchers say a new model based on measuring stress from daily “hassles” may help forecast future migraine headache attacks in those who suffer them frequently.

The findings, published in the journal Headache, suggest that it may be possible to predict the occurrence of tomorrow’s migraine attack based on today’s stress.

Study lead author Associate Professor Tim Houle, of Massachusetts General Hospital in the United States, said: “We know that certain people are at greater risk of having an attack over other people, but within a person, we have not been able to predict increased risk for an attack with any level of accuracy.

“This study demonstrates that it is quite possible to forecast the occurrence of a headache attack within an individual headache sufferer.”

In the study by Dr Houle and his colleagues, which included 95 people with 4,195 days of diary data, participants experienced a headache attack on 1,613 days (38.5%).

Dr Houle said a simple forecasting model using either the frequency of stressful events or the perceived intensity of the events had “promising” predictive value.

While the participants reported low to moderate levels of stress overall, stress was greater on days preceding a headache.

Dr Houle said with refinement, the model has the potential to allow for pre-emptive treatment of migraine attacks when someone is at greatest risk, thereby avoiding pain and disability.