At least two weather patterns increase headaches, UC study suggests
Experts show which prescription medication reduces the likelihood of weather-associated headaches
Two specific weather patterns have been identified as capable of increasing the risk of headaches and migraines, thanks to physicians at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, along with researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Errex Inc. and Teva Pharmaceuticals.
Photo/iStock/Prostock-Studio.
Headaches and migraines are often associated with weather variables such as barometric pressure, precipitation, humidity and temperature. As weather patterns vary around the world, evidence suggests their impacts vary across geographic regions, seasons and population groups.
“Weather is one of the most common triggers for attacks of migraine headache,” said study author Vincent Martin, MD, a professor of clinical medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine and director of the Headache and Facial Pain Center at UC’s Gardner Neuroscience Institute. “Our investigation suggests that specific storm patterns may help explain why weather-related headaches and migraines are so frequent in Cincinnati and the Midwest region.”
For this study, researchers analyzed weather patterns in the Northeast U.S. to determine whether any are associated with new-onset headaches in patients with episodic migraines.
“What is significant about this headache research is that we are one of the first to look at weather patterns with a combination of variables, instead of a single weather variable,” said Martin. “We further examined those weather patterns by region and season.”
Which weather patterns are linked to higher headache risk?
They found that two specific weather patterns were associated with a higher risk of new-onset headaches in the Northeastern region. One is an approaching cold front, or low-pressure system, with precipitation, which can occur in all seasons. The other is the Bermuda High, a high-pressure system that heavily dictates summer weather across the eastern half of the U.S.
“This is one of the first studies to more closely implicate frontal passage in the onset of headache,” said Al Peterlin, a co-investigator and meteorologist from Errex Inc.
This is one of the first studies to suggest that a preventive medication might reduce the likelihood of a weather-associated headache.
Brinder Vij, MD Lead author, professor of clinical medicine & director of the Division of Headache Medicine in the Department of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine
Photo/iStock/robertprzybysz.
To determine their findings, researchers compared thousands of daily headache diary entries from participants at the Northeastern U.S. sites of the HALO-EM and HALO-LTS studies, both randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 3 clinical trials that established the safety and efficacy of the prescription medication fremanezumab (Ajovy) for the preventive treatment of episodic migraines. They linked the headache data to daily meteorological data from the National Climatic Data Center, tracking four years of weather patterns organized into three-day windows.
Researchers also confirmed that at least six months of treatment with fremanezumab significantly reduced the rate of new-onset headaches compared with no medication across all weather patterns, including conditions considered high risk for new headache onset.
“We saw the weather and headache relationship wiped out with the use of this medication,” said Fred Cohen, MD, a co-investigator and faculty member at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “We started to notice its effectiveness as early as one month after the start of the medication.”
The findings, “Weathering the Storm: Fremanezumab Reduces Weather-Associated Headaches in the Northeast United States,” will be presented at the American Headache Society Annual Scientific Meeting, June 4 to 7 in Orlando.
“This is one of the first studies to suggest that a preventive medication might reduce the likelihood of a weather-associated headache,” said lead author Brinder Vij, MD, a professor of clinical medicine and director of the Division of Headache Medicine in the Department of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine.
He further stated that this study offers new hope for the millions of people with migraine experiencing weather-associated headaches.
Photo/iStock/leolingtang.
Research collaborators include: Ying Zhang, Teva Branded Pharmaceutical Products R&D Inc.; Mario Ortega and Jing Wang, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries; Fred Cohen, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; and Albert Peterlin, Environmental Rights and Releases Exchange (ERREx) Inc.
NOTE: Teva Pharmaceuticals, the maker of Ajovy, funded this study.
Featured image at top: iStock/karelnoppe.
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