At Stanford Health Care, our vestibular balance disorder specialists listen to you and provide a detailed assessment. We work with you to reduce the frequency and severity of attacks so you can live a full, active life.
Overview
What Is Vestibular Migraine?
A migraine is a neurological condition caused by abnormal electrical signals in the brain. The classic migraine symptom is a throbbing headache, often on one side of the head. People with migraines usually experience other symptoms as well, such as vision disturbances, nausea, and vomiting.
A vestibular migraine occurs when the vestibular area of the brain is also affected. The vestibular system, located in your inner ear and brain, controls balance and your sense of motion. In vestibular migraine, the dominant symptom is any abnormal sensation of motion. Other migraine-like symptoms also occur — but not always a headache.
People with vestibular migraine often have a history of migraine or motion sickness. Vestibular migraine is also associated with common balance disorders like benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) and rare balance disorders, such as Ménière’s disease.
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Symptoms of Vestibular Migraine
Vestibular migraine includes a combination of vestibular (motion or balance) and migraine symptoms. Vertigo is the primary symptom, which is any false sense of motion such as spinning, floating, rocking, swaying or intolerance to motion such as moving your head, eyes, body or watching moving objects.
Other symptoms of vestibular migraine may include:
- Dizziness
- Loss of balance
- Nausea and vomiting
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
- Sensitivity to light, noise, and smells
- Throbbing headache
- Vision disturbances, such as patterns, blind spots, or flashes of light
- Neck pain
- Fullness in the ears
Attacks of vertigo do not always occur at the same time as other symptoms and can last from seconds or minutes to weeks.
Vestibular Migraine Causes
Vestibular migraine often runs in families, suggesting that genetics plays a role. But doctors do not fully understand the complex mechanisms in the brain that cause vestibular migraine.
Environmental, behavioral, or diet-related factors may trigger vestibular migraine. Triggers are different for everyone but may include:
- Alcohol
- Caffeine
- Dehydration
- Foods containing MSG or artificial sweeteners
- Medications
- Menstrual cycle
- Sleep disturbance
- Skipping meals
- Smoking
- Stimuli such as bright lights, loud noises, or smells
- Stress
- Weather changes
Vestibular migraine is associated with other vestibular disorders, including Ménière’s disease, PPPD, superior canal dehiscence, and BPPV. However, the relationship between vestibular migraine and these conditions is unclear.
There are no specific tests for vestibular migraine. And because vestibular migraines can occur with other vestibular disorders, diagnosis can be challenging.
Your doctor will ask you about your medical history, family health history, and symptoms. Diagnosis is often based on this clinical evaluation.
You may also receive tests to rule out other conditions. These tests may include:
- Dix-Hallpike maneuver to test for BPPV
- Eye movement tests to detect abnormal eye movements or check your ability to focus
- Hearing tests to check for hearing loss
- Imaging tests, such as MRI and CT scans, to look for other brain conditions
- Neurological tests to check for changes in brain and nervous system function
Vestibular Migraine
Vestibular migraine causes vertigo and migraine-like symptoms with or without a headache. The main treatment is to identify and reduce your triggers.
Vestibular migraine
Vestibular migraine symptoms
vestibular migraine treatment
migraine-associated vertigo
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