Dopamine Levels Fall During Migraine Attacks
Researchers at University of Michigan measured brain
activity via PET scans and dopamine levels of eight patients experiencing
migraines and eight healthy patients to compare their levels. Dopamine is
widely known as the brain’s feel good neurotransmitter that is involved in
emotion regulation and sensory perception. It was found by the researchers that
dopamine levels dropped significantly during the migraine attacks, and between
each attack there was a serious fluctuation of the neurotransmitter’s levels. A
drop in dopamine correlates with a higher sensitivity to stimuli, explaining
why people who suffer from migraines are often sensitive to light and sound
during those times. The surprising factor the researchers found was that patients
saw a quick increase in dopamine levels as a form of attempted recovery, but
conditions in fact worsened as a result of the spike. This research supports
medical practices of giving migraine patients a dopamine antagonist in order to
level off the fluctuation and ease symptoms.
I found
this article attention grabbing because I know a lot of people who suffer from
regular migraines, and used to suffer from them myself as a child. It is
surprising to me that the dopamine levels increasing had made the symptoms of
sensitivity worse; it’s almost as if the brain is overcompensating when the
body is not prepared for the recovery. This point is when we would feel more
nausea and dizziness as a result of the spike in levels. In class we talk about dopamine being related
to movement control and reinforcing effects of things like sex and drugs. While
it makes sense that your mood drops as dopamine drops during a migraine, I am
curious as to the relation between migraines and movement control, seeing as
people normally cannot do much of anything because of how the physical symptoms
are affecting them. It’s interesting that the neurotransmitter’s variability
can have such a large impact so rapidly on the body.
This is a very relatable article for me. I have suffered from migraines for a little over 6 years now and this research has helped me understand my symptoms a little better. During migraine attacks, I definitely feel a heightened sensitivity to stimuli; especially light and sound. I also know that many people with migraines see an aura right before a migraine attack. I wonder if this is caused by the decrease in dopamine levels which lead to heightened sensitivity. Because dopamine levels drop during migraines, do sufferers feel so terrible because of the physical pain or because of the lack of the "feel good" neurotransmitter? I think to further this research, researchers should explore how naturally increasing dopamine through activities like exercise may affect how frequently people get migraines and at what intensity.
ReplyDeleteI also suffer from migraines on a regular basis. This gives me more knowledge to work with in understanding what is going on in my own head when I'm experiencing one. Personally I get extremely sensitive to light and occasionally see flashes of light. It makes me wonder if the light flashes have something to do with my dopamine levels fluctuating.
ReplyDeleteI used to suffer from severe headaches so this article is very insightful. It's very common to not even want to be around bright light while experiencing one. I can't imagine dopamine levels rising while such a horrible thing is happening to you. Like Brain said, I wonder if the environment has anything to do with dopamine levels or if they automatically lower at the onset of a migraine.
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