* The so called "migraine personality" theory (which states that
migraine suffers are more likely to be obsessive, perfectionistic, and
perhaps less social) is similar to the to the concept of the "broder
phenotype" of autism.  While both these theories are contriversial and
reasearch on them has mixed results, it is still interesting.

* Both people with migrains and autistic people are said to have higher
incidences of:
        - Epilepsy
        - Depression
        - and Anxiety

* There is a lot of evidence that there is some abnormal visual
processing in migraine patients, and that migraineurs often are
sensitive to certian visual patterns, which they find adversive.
"Sensory issues" of various types and severities are are usually found
in autistic individuals.

* Autistic people are often believed to have an overly reactive cortex
and/or brainstem.  Migraines are also believed to involve cortical
oversensitivity, especially in the occipital lobe.

* The autistic phenomena reffered to as "shut-down" often have many
simularities to auras. (Other have compared them to seizures.)  I am not
nessicarily implying they are the same thing (though *some* shut downs
may actually be auras without headache), but they could be related,
and/or (as I just said parenthetically) have some overlap.

* I have no idea how many autistic people experience migraine -- I've
never asked most of the ones I know.  I do know that *some* do, as I did
frequently as a child.

        The point of all this:  Some scientist out there (presumably with more
time and resources than I) should really do a study on the prevalence of
migraine in autistic individuals.  As a former (and I hope not future)
migraine sufferer, as well as a high-functioning autistic person, I can
imagine that non-verbal child with a migraine would be very distressed
with no way of tell what the problem was.  (I'm not sure how you would
detect the headache, but this really could be a cause of otherwise
unexplained distress in a non-verbal person.)  Anyway, thats the point,
and I hope not to get to many flames for this message.  I doubt anyone
will disagree that *migraines* should be treated.

Jared.

PS: People wanting to discuss this in detail on any of the for lists
might want to erase or edit the cross posting, so that it doesn't wander
to far off topic for any list -- many people have a bad habit of
forgetting this (sometimes even me).

(snipped)

All of the above!!

I have always found it interesting that I had my first migraine when I was
pregnant with my son -- about 3-5 months along.  I rarely have an aura, but
when I do, I know this one is gonna be a lulu and I better get to a safe
place fast.  Usually have one or more a week.

The discussion under "fluorescent lights" is so familiar.  I've had visual
disturbances from light filtering through the trees while driving that made
me think I had struck a person who was on the curb.  Many times.  I've
always stopped and check for an animal or person, but there is none there.
My brain just registered a shadow like a figure, and then you go across
uneven pavement or a bump -- my heart sinks from fear each time.  My
ophthalmologist thought I was a little off when I try to explain what
happens.

Gemmom

Hans Kamp.

Thanks.  I am just learning.  Who knows when I might find this useful.

The comparison sounds a bit stretched, but let me help you out in one
respect: migrainous phenomena do not necessarily involve headache.
This is the most widely recognized manifestation, but the mechanism
underlying migraine headache may underly some other episodic phenomena,
e.g. confusional migraine (of which transient global amnesia may be a
variant), a particular type of hemiplegia, and some cases of vertigo.

In the case of migraine headache, at least the mechanism may involve
spreading cortical depression (of Leao?); don't know if this works for
related conditions (hard to imagine SCD in the brainstem, for example).

In individual cases, the association may be simply comorbidity with
migraine, and in others actual concurrent symptoms (i.e. headache and
the other manifestation).  Thus, inability to report an actual headache
doesn't necessarily disallow such an explanation.

F. Frank LeFever, Ph.D.
New York Neuropsychology Group

Jared.

Transient global amnesia involves some confusion as well, but perhaps
only secondary to the bewildering experience of not being able to
remember where one is or how one got there or (for a while) what has
been happening during this experience (so the patient may ask
repeatedly "where am I?", "who are you?" and not remember the answer
that was given just minutes before).

I think I made the point, perhaps overlooked, that there need not be
any headache involved in either case. (Indeed, some had tried to
explain TGA in terrms of posterior circulation TIA--transient ischemic
attack--and perhaps some still do).

In the case of migrainous vertigo there is a connection with headache
in that people with vertigo (and other causes ruled out) are very
likely to have migraine headaches--but not necessarily at the same time
that they have the vertigo.  Favorable response to anti-migraine
treatments further help to characterize this as a migrainous
phenomenon.

F. Frank LeFever, Ph.D.
New York Neuropsychology Group