Pregnancy planning a headache for many women
Almost 20% of women with migraine are avoiding pregnancy due to their condition, according to data from the American Registry for Migraine Research (ARMR).
Most (72.5%) believed their migraine would be worse during or just after pregnancy and 68.3% said the disability caused by migraine would make pregnancy very difficult.
Speaking at the ANZ Headache Society ASM, Dr Ryotaro Ishii, director of neurology at Kyoto Okamato Memorial Hospital, said 607 women responded to the question ‘Have migraines impacted your plans for pregnancy?’.
Women who chose to avoid pregnancy due to their migraine were typically younger and had no children (60%) than those who said migraine had no impact on their pregnancy plans.
The women avoiding pregnancy were more likely to have chronic migraine and depression, more headache days and higher MIDAS scores. More than a third of women said their migraine was always triggered by menstruation.
Dr Ishii said it was important to educate women of childbearing age that most women have migraine improvements during pregnancy.
Headache coexists with pelvic pain in young women
Young women with headache are more likely to experience pelvic pain given the overlap between chronic pain conditions.
Gynecologist and pain physician Associate Professor Susan Evans from the University of Adelaide, told the ANZ Headache Society that the gender pain disadvantage started in females at puberty. The most common situation was both abdominal pain and headache.
Associate Professor Evans said Australian data showed about 50% of women presenting with period-related pelvic pain were also troubled by headache.
She said management with diclofenac 100mg suppositories overnight would provide long-lasting relief from both headache and period pain. Co-medication with a triptan was also an option.