All About The Ocular Migraine
Opthalmic or eye migraine headaches, commonly called ocular migraines, are irregularities in vision that may or may not be accompanied by headaches. These irregularities may be caused by changes in blood flow to the brain.
Causes of Ocular migraines
Ocular migraines can be triggered by changes in hormone levels, flashing or flickering lights, chemical compounds in food, or medications the patient is taking. Visual symptoms are a common symptom of these headaches.
Scotoma
Some ocular migraine sufferers experience a scotoma, or blind spot in their central vision. Sometimes the patient sees bright flickering lights, or scintillations, around the scotoma, and sometimes they see a shimmering jagged line inside the blind spot. The spot gets larger as the ocular migraine headache progresses and may appear to move across the patient's field of vision.
An ocular headache may also be accompanied by gripping pain on one side of the head, light flashes, and the impression of sparks appearing in the field of vision. The headaches also come with nausea, vomiting, and double vision.
Ocular migraines are usually harmless and do not cause usually permanent damage or require treatment. That doesn't mean you can go on with your regular activities if you feel an ocular headache coming on.
If you have an ocular headache while you are doing something that requires clear vision, like driving or working, you should stop immediately and wait until the migraine passes or until your vision clears enough to safely continue your activities.
Ocular migraines may be caused by a variety of factors. Common causes include hormonal changes associated with menstruation; changes in blood flow to the brain caused by alcohol consumption; consumption of certain foods like red wine, hard cheese, milk, preserved lunchmeats and bacon, and foods prepared with MSG. Thus a strict vegan diet, which excludes all meat, cheese, and other animal-derived food products, is thought to control the onset of the migraine headache.
For some patients, bright sunlight or flickering sunshine and shadow can bring on the onset of a migraine.
Ocular migraines are usually treated by allowing the patient to rest in a quiet, darkened room until the pain passes. Patients who suffer from frequent ocular migraine headaches should consult with their physicians to see if, working together, they can identify and therefore eliminate the cause of the ocular migraine headache.
If prophylactic treatment does not prevent the ocular migraines from occurring, then a course of drug treatment may be recommended.
