Men with migraine headaches are more likely to experience a heart attack than those who do not have migraine. Previous analysis found no association between migraine and heart disease after an average follow-up of 12 years. Since migraine is relatively uncommon in men, longer follow-up may be needed to show an association. Researchers from the Harvard Medical School in Boston conducted a study where they enrolled men of ages 40 to 84 years between 1981 and 1984. The subjects, who had no history of heart disease, cancer or other major illness at enrolment, completed questionnaires annually regarding health issues. The team included data till the end of February 2005, with an average follow-up of 16 years. Among 20,084 men, 1,449 reported having migraine in the first 5 years of the study, and a total of 2,236 events related to heart disease or stroke were documented during follow-up. Compared with men with no history of migraine, those with migraine had a 24 percent increased risk of such events and 42 percent increased risk of heart attack. Men with migraine were also more prone to stroke, although the increased risk was not statistically significant. Still, a moderate effect on stroke risk was noted in men younger than 55 years of age.
Archives of Internal Medicine,
April 2007