Diagnosis and pathophysiology of migraine

Abstract

Over the past 10 years there has been an explosion of knowledge about headache, particularly migraine. Fueled by new, highly effective therapeutic agents, vast resources have been invested in improving diagnostic accuracy and attempting to understand the mechanisms by which this symptom is generated. Public awareness has increased as has that of the medical community. Tools are now available to help diagnose particular types of headache and measure/monitor disability. Numerous pathophysiologic changes have been studied which may in turn increase the therapeutic armamentarium. With approximately 10% of the public suffering from migraine and with most of these cases remaining undiagnosed, it is likely that this segment of the healthcare market will continue to expand in the future.

• 5-hydroxytryptamine
• dopamine
• familial hemiplegic migraine
• International Headache Society
• neuroimaging
• pathophysiology
• serotonin
• trigeminovascular
• triptans