Migraine During Pregnancy Elevates The Risk Of Preterm Delivery, High Blood Pressure And Preeclampsia

A study has found that women who have a history of migraine are at a higher risk of pregnancy complications like gestational high blood pressure, preterm delivery and more.

Pregnancy is one of the most special times in a woman's life, but it is also one of the most difficult. A woman goes through an awful lot when she is pregnant. If you are pregnant, there is no doubt that you are suffering from new pains and aches. And one that women often experience during pregnancy is migraine. Yes, the hormonal changes can mess with your head as well.

For the unversed, a migraine is a form of headache that causes severe throbbing on one side of the head. Imagine having a 3-year-old living behind your eye socket, hammering on a drum nonstop. Every rhythm sends waves of pain through your head, and it can be extremely painful. So, are you suffering from migraine too?

Migraine During Pregnancy Can Trigger Other Diseases

According to a study published in the American Academy of Neurology, women who suffer from migraine are at a higher risk of complications like gestational high blood pressure, preeclampsia, and preterm delivery. Study author Alexandra Purdue-Smithe, PhD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, "Roughly 20 per cent of women of childbearing age experience migraine, but the impact of migraine on pregnancy outcomes has not been well understood."

Over 20 years, researchers looked at more than 30,000 pregnancies in around 19,000 women for the study. In those pregnancies, 11 per cent of the women said they had been diagnosed with migraines by a doctor before becoming pregnant. Preterm delivery, defined as a baby born before 37 weeks, gestational diabetes, gestational high blood pressure, preeclampsia, and low birth weight were among the issues studied by the researchers.

Researchers also compared migraine with and without aura. They found that women with migraine with aura were 51 per cent more likely than women without migraine to develop preeclampsia during pregnancy, while migraine without aura was 29 per cent more probable.

After adjusting for age, obesity, and other behavioural and health factors that could influence the risk of complications, researchers discovered that women with migraine had a 17 per cent higher risk of preterm delivery, a 28 per cent higher risk of gestational high blood pressure, and a 40 per cent higher risk of preeclampsia when compared to women without migraine. 10 per cent of the 3,881 pregnancies among migraine-affected women were delivered prematurely, compared to 8 per cent of births among migraine-free women.

Limitations Of The Study

Researchers of the study believe that while the risks of developing these problems for pregnant woman was low, women with migraine should consult a doctor to understand the potential risks involved. Also, there were certain limitations to the study that the researchers wanted to highlight.

Although migraine history was acquired before pregnancy, information on migraine aura was not collected until later in the study, when many of the pregnancies had ended. As a result, the findings for migraine aura could have been influenced by the individuals' ability to recall their experiences accurately. Another issue is the lack of data on migraine attack frequency and other migraine characteristics. Therefore, more research is required to understand the effects of migraine on pregnancy.