migraine
noun
miĀ·graine
| \ ĖmÄ«-ĖgrÄn
, British often ĖmÄ-\
, British often ĖmÄ-\
plural migraines
Definition of migraine
1a
: a condition marked by recurring moderate to severe headache with throbbing pain that usually lasts from four hours to three days, typically begins on one side of the head but may spread to both sides, is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light or sound, and is sometimes preceded by an aura and is often followed by fatigue
Migraine affects three times as many women as men. — The Journal of the American Medical Association About 20 percent of migraine sufferers experience an aura as the first symptom of an attack. The aura may be a pulsing star of light, or a dance of geometric forms across the visual field ā¦— Natalie Angier
b
: a condition that is a variant form of the typical migraine but in which headache is absent or not a prominent symptom:
(1)
: a condition in which an aura involving visual disturbances (such as diplopia, scotoma, or tunnel vision) is the main symptom and is not followed by headache
— called also acephalgic migraine, silent migraine
(2)
: a condition that is marked by episodic bodily dysfunction (such as cyclic vomiting, abdominal pain, dizziness, vertigo, or unilateral weakness or paralysis) and may be accompanied by headache
abdominal migraine vestibular migraine In retinal migraine, repeated episodes of unilateral visual disorder occur with or without headache.— Sid Gilman
2
: an episode or attack of migraine
Most patients use a class of drugs known as "triptans," to relieve occasional migraines. But triptans don't work for 20% to 30% of patients.— Tara Parker-Pope
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Other Words from migraine
migrainous
\ ĖmÄ«-ĖgrÄ-nÉs
\
adjective
\
adjective
Examples of migraine in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The focal point of the second episode is Rhonda (Kate Nash) getting a migraine. — Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, "GLOW Goes Post-plot," 8 Aug. 2019 Senzel has been plagued my migraines and bouts of vertigo in the past. — Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Brewers 5, Reds 4: Freddy Peralta rescues overworked bullpen, ChacĆn headed for injured list," 24 July 2019 Backup center Richaun Holmes was out with a migraine. — Jack Magruder, The Seattle Times, "Valanciunasā huge night helps Grizzlies overcome Bookerās 48," 30 Mar. 2019 Its most famous drug is Botox, which is used to treat muscle spasms and migraines but is also commonly used as a cosmetic agent to reduce skin wrinkles. — Chris Isidore, CNN, "AbbVie to buy Allergan in a $63 billion drug deal," 25 June 2019 Miguel Andujar of the New York Yankees has served as the teamās everyday third baseman since Brandon Drury landed on the disabled list in early April because of blurred vision and severe migraines. — Brian Rudd, USA TODAY, "Injuries give young players opportunity," 9 May 2018 Complicating matters, fibromyalgia often coexists with other conditions, like irritable bowel syndrome and migraines. — Leslie Goldman, Woman's Day, "More Women Have Fibromyalgia Than Breast Cancer," 10 Sep. 2017 Nationally, about 10 percent of school-age children suffer from migraine, according to the Migraine Research Foundation. — Anne Saker, Cincinnati.com, "Puberty and migraines have an early connection for girls, UC study finds," 16 July 2019 The details The center has two ketamine treatment rooms and two other rooms for non-clinical IV infusions ā such as bags to treat migraines or increase oneās endurance or focus. — Jane Stueckemann, Houston Chronicle, "The Woodlands gets first ketamine infusion center to treat depression," 9 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'migraine.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for migraine
migraine
noun
English Language Learners Definition of migraine
: a very bad headache
See the full definition for migraine in the English Language Learners Dictionary
migraine
noun
miĀ·graine
| \ ĖmÄ«-ĖgrÄn, British often ĖmÄ-\
Medical Definition of migraine
1a
: a condition marked by recurring moderate to severe headache with throbbing pain that usually lasts from four hours to three days, typically begins on one side of the head but may spread to both sides, is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light or sound, and is sometimes preceded by an aura and is often followed by fatigue
Note: Migraine tends to occur in more than one member of a family and is of uncertain origin though attacks appear to be associated with dilation of intracranial blood vessels and release of serotonin and other inflammatory substances.
Migraine is a common disorder that can severely affect patients' quality of life and daily function. The patients typically have attacks of unilateral, pulsating, severe or moderately severe headache aggravated by routine physical activity ā¦ — The New England Journal of Medicine About 20 percent of migraine sufferers experience an aura as the first symptom of an attack. The aura may be a pulsing star of light, or a dance of geometric forms across the visual field ā¦— Natalie Angier
b
: a condition that is a variant form of the typical migraine but in which headache is absent or not a prominent symptom:
(1)
: a condition in which an aura involving visual disturbances (as diplopia, scotoma, or tunnel vision) is the main symptom and is not followed by headache
Approximately 20% of migraineurs may experience acephalgic attacks of migraine at one time or another. Indeed, that various symptoms can occur in the absence of any headache has been noted for some time; in fact, visual phenomena were described as early as the 12th century.— Donald M. Pedersen et al.
— called also acephalgic migraine, silent migraine
(2)
: a condition that is marked by episodic bodily dysfunction (as cyclic vomiting, abdominal pain, dizziness, vertigo, or unilateral weakness or paralysis) and may be accompanied by headache
abdominal migraine vestibular migraine In retinal migraine, repeated episodes of unilateral visual disorder occur with or without headache.— Sid Gilman
2
: an episode or attack of migraine
Most patients use a class of drugs known as "triptans," such as Imitrex, to relieve occasional migraines. But triptans don't work for 20% to 30% of patients.— Tara Parker-Pope Lynn Goldstein, a dietitian at Weill Cornell, advises patients to remove suspected "trigger" foods from their diet for a period of time and monitor how their migraines are affected. — Food & Fitness Advisor
— called also sick headache
Other Words from migraine
migrainous
\ -ĖgrÄ-nÉs
\
adjective
\
adjective
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