migraines

Medical Students Are At Risk For Suicide

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Medical students have the difficult task of learning through science and rigorous academic training to take care of others. Med students can suffer from many ailments including anxiety, stress or migraines or even worse. Being a doctor of any kind is quite simply about learning to make other people feel better, and it’s possible to heal your patient that’s the goal. Unfortunately, there are times when a patient doesn’t make it and that can feel devastating to a med student who is undergoing training, such as a resident. You are just learning and have a sense of optimism about the field. You want to help people, genuinely and seeing your patient die is a tragedy and can leave you feeling depressed. According to The American Medical Student Association, med students are three times as likely to die by suicide than … Read more

Diseases that causes rashes on the skin can trigger neurological problems

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An interesting chapter titled “Acquired neurocutaneous disorders” which appeared last year discusses how diseases that cause rashes and skin problems can trigger neuroglical conditions such as migraine headaches and strokes. The article was published in Handbook of Clinical Neurology by three authors affiliated with the Department of Neurology of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. The authors say that a variety of neurological diseases have skin related manifestations that precede, coincide with or follow neurologic findings. A few of the diseases described in the article that cause both skin and neurological problems are: Sjögren syndrome. Sjögren syndrome is an autoimmune disease where the body attacks its own tissues. The most common skin problem Sjögren syndrome causes is xerosis which causes dull, itchy skin with a fine, white bran-like scale. Neurologic problems caused by Sjögren syndrome include aphasia (inability to talk … Read more

Acheiving Optimal Peformance with Biofeedback and Neurofeedback

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 I came across an interesting discussion about biofeedback in the journal called Biofeedback. I have experience with biofeedback and have discussed some of this here http://www.teethremoval.com/biofeedback.html. The article presents the narrative of a young cellist who is able to realize the potential of his talent and also able to eliminate migraine headaches. William, the name young musician described in the article, sought relief from migraine headaches that were affecting him almost daily. His therapy, however, did not take the approach of treating the headaches, but of focusing on William as a person and as a performer. By improving his functionality, working through moments of obsessiveness, self-criticism, fear, and anxiety, the headaches could also be resolved. William used sensors to read his brainwaves using software which gave feedback to the brain through a visual display and sound. This technology is able … Read more

Exercise Effective for Preventing Migraines

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An interesting study was recently published in Cephalalgia and looked at 91 migraine patients. A third of these patients were asked to exercise for 40 minutes for 3 times a week with the supervision of a physiotherapist, another third were doing relaxation exercises, and the final third of the patients was given topiramate. The study lasted for a total of 3 months, in which the migraine status, aerobic capacity, level of physical activity, and quality of life was evaluated.  Follow ups of the study were carried out after 3 and 6 months. The randomized controlled study was performed by researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. The results showed that the number of migraines fell in all three groups that were examined and described above. There was no difference in the preventative effect between the … Read more