Migraine in the medical student- A review

Abstract

Headache disorders, and migraine especially have been found to cause so much disability in the world at large and among medical students. As is the prevalence which has been found to be more in females, so is the severity of disability caused by migraine. Genetics and menstruation are non-modifiable risk factors associated with migraine. Modifiable risk factors that predict or trigger migraine include the year of study, the level of stress and adaptability, lack or absence of sleep, cigarette smoking and mental illness. Persons suffering from migraine have been found to also suffer from various comorbidities which includes sleep disorders, alexithymia and allodynia and among others. The impact of migraine on the level of productivity especially in the academic, social, and psychological aspects of a person’s life have been found to be remarkable. This impact can however be reduced with regular physical activity. Medical students have been seen to resort to self-medication with the use of different classes of analgesics and other forms of therapy as opposed to seeking medical therapy. Only a few were found to use migraine prophylaxis.