A high incidence of migraine with aura among morbidly obese women

Introduction. - Nearly two-thirds of adults in the United States and an increasing percentage of the population worldwide are overweight or obese. The relationship of obesity to headache has received inadequate attention. We evaluated the incidence of headache in a sample of morbidly obese women. Methods. - Morbidly obese women, attending the surgical preoperative clinic of Soroka University Medical Center for preoperative assessment for laparoscopic gastric banding were evaluated using a structured interview and their medical charts were reviewed. Results. - During a 2-month period, 27 morbidly obese women were interviewed, with a mean BMI of 41.07. Ten patients suffered from migraine with aura, three from migraine without aura, and four from tension headache. Conclusion. - The unusually high incidence of migraine with aura can be attributed to extraovarian production of estrogen and estradiol in the adipose tissue. Further study is indicated to explore the therapeutic role of weight loss in headache care.