Hole in Heart Can Cause Migraines
Patent foramen ovale (PFO), an opening between the heart’s two upper (atrial) chambers, has been linked to strokes, decompression sickness, and migraines with auras. Devices that seal this hole in the heart may help severe migraine sufferers; some patients who receive the implant have a 37% reduction in migraine burden - number and length of episodes.
The procedure to implant the device in the heart takes about 45 minutes and uses a catheter to thread the implant via a vein in the groin up to the heart.
Scientists don’t know why the PFO hole plays a role in triggering migraines, but they speculate that when the blood bypasses the lungs, and instead is shunted directly from the right to the left chamber of the heart, impurities that would have been filtered out by the lungs remain in the blood.
“Something — either tiny blood clots or chemicals — is being delivered to the brain that increases the likelihood someone will have migraines,” says [Dr. Jonathan] Lipton.
Clinical trials to test cardiac implants for sealing PFO defects, such as the STARFlex System, are currently recruiting. Non-implant methods are also being investigated, including one clinical trial of the Cierra PFx Closure System. Visit ClinicalTrials.gov to find out more about the inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Los Angeles Times, July 31, 2006
Tags: clinical-trials, congenital-heart-defect, decompression, disease, health, heart, heart-disease, illness, migraines, patent-foramen-ovale, pfo, strokeRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Heart Conditions, Hearty Research
1 opinion for Hole in Heart Can Cause Migraines
A Hearty Life » Cardiac Implants to Seal Patent Foramen Ovale
Oct 31, 2006 at 12:41 am
[...] A couple of months ago, I wrote about the connection between patent foramen ovale (PFO) and migraines. PFO is a common defect of the heart where the opening between the two upper chambers don’t grow shut. When blood returns to the heart, it’s supposed to go to the lungs to pick up more oxygen and be filtered clean. A PFO can allow some blood to seep back into circulation without that filtering step. The theory: That could allow small blood clots or other substances into the bloodstream, traveling straight to the brain. [...]
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