Misdiagnosis of Migraine
Alternative diagnoses list for Migraine:
For a diagnosis of Migraine,
the following list of conditions
have been mentioned in sources
as possible alternative diagnoses
to consider during the diagnostic process for Migraine:
Diseases for which Migraine may be an alternative diagnosis
The other diseases for which Migraine
is listed as a possible alternative
diagnosis in their lists include:
Migraine: Hidden Causes Misdiagnosed?
Causes of Migraine may include these medical conditions:
- Genetic causes - autosomal dominance
- Secondary to brain dysfunction
- Depolarization theory
- Vascular theory
- Family history of migraine headaches (70-80%)
- Medications (ie, birth control pills, vasodilators)
- more causes...»
Rare Types of Migraine:
- Exertion related migraine
- Medication related migraine
- Food and alcohol related migraine
- More rare types »
Migraine Diagnosis: Book Excerpts
Migraine: Medical Mistakes
Related medical mistakes may include:
Migraine: Undiagnosed Conditions
Commonly undiagnosed conditions in related areas may include:
Discussion of diagnosis/misdiagnosis of Migraine:
Headache - Hope Through Research: NINDS (Excerpt)
The similarity between migraine and
symptoms of TIA can cause problems in diagnosis. The rare person under age
40 who suffers a TIA may be misdiagnosed as having migraine; similarly,
TIA-prone older patients who suffer migraine may be misdiagnosed as having
stroke-related headaches. (Source: excerpt from Headache - Hope Through Research: NINDS)
MIGRAINE HEADACHES: NWHIC (Excerpt)
Tension headaches are usually described as a continuous pressure pain
or tightness of varying severity over the entire head, whereas migraine
headaches are a severe, throbbing pain over one or both temples, or behind
one eye or ear, and are often accompanied by nausea and vomiting. (Source: excerpt from MIGRAINE HEADACHES: NWHIC)
Common Misdiagnoses and Migraine
Migraine an undiagnosed cause of headache: It is surprising that many migraine sufferers are not
initially diagnosed. Although the condition is fairly well known, there are also many other causes of headache,
and the diagnsosis of migraine is not always straight forward.
See the introduction to migraine or other causes of headache (and types of headache).
Leg cramps at night a classic sign: The symptom of having leg muscle cramps,
particularly at night, is a classic sign of undiagnosed diabetes.
However, there are also various other causes.
See causes of leg cramps or misdiagnosis of diabetes.
Mild traumatic brain injury often remains undiagnosed: Although the symptoms
of severe brain injury are hard to miss,
it is less clear for milder injuries, or even those causing a mild concussion diagnosis.
The condition goes by the name of "mild traumatic brain injury" (MTBI).
MTBI symptoms can be mild, and can continue for days or weeks after the injury.
See the symptoms of MTBI or misdiagnosis of MTBI.
MTBI misdiagnosed as balance problem: When a person has symptoms
such as vertigo or dizziness, a diagnosis of brain injury may go overlooked.
This is particularly true of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), for which the
symptoms are typically mild. The symptoms has also relate to a relatively
mild brain injury (e.g. fall), that could have occurred days or even weeks ago.
Vestibular dysfunction, causing vertigo-like symptoms, is a common complication
of mild brain injury.
See causes of dizziness, causes of vertigo, or misdiagnosis of MTBI.
Post-concussive brain injury often misdiagnosed: A study found that soldiers who had
suffered a concussive injury in battle often were misdiagnosed on their return.
A variety of symptoms can occur in post-concussion syndrome and these were not being correctly
attributed to their concussion injury.
See introduction to concussion.
Children with migraine often misdiagnosed: A migraine often fails to be
correctly diagnosed in pediatric patients.
These patients are not the typical migraine sufferers, but migraines can also occur in children.
See misdiagnosis of migraine or introduction to migraine.
Pituitary conditions often undiagnosed cause of symptoms: There are a variety of symptoms
that can be caused by a pituitary disorder (see symptoms of pituitary disorders).
For example, fatigue, headache, weight gain, diabetes-like symptoms, and various other symptoms.
Pituitary tumors and other similar conditions are not as rare as physicians tend to believe.
See introduction to pituitary conditions.
Vitamin B12 deficiency under-diagnosed: The condition of Vitamin B12 deficiency
is a possible misdiagnosis of various conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (see symptoms of multiple sclerosis).
See symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency or misdiagnosis of multiple sclerosis.
Dizziness in children: Dizziness although not a common cause in children can have threatening causes and requires quick diagnosis as the possibility of tumours such as medulloblastoma is possible but the most commonest causes include seizure of the temporal lobe. other causes being migraine, vestibular neuronitis, psychosomatic vertigo, middle ear infections, trauma and benign paroxysmal vertigo. A detailed history regarding the onset, duration and presence of other related symptoms such as fever, earache and discharge must be recorded.
Rare cases of headache: Headache is
one of the common symptoms presenting in general practice. It needs a sound
diagnostic and management strategy as the problem can be confusing. The key to
diagnosing the condition is to know and understand the cause. A lot of factors need
to kept in mind in order as to avoid misdiagnosing the cause of headache. A
good history regarding the onset, duration, associated symptoms and general
physical examination of the patient is a must. Common conditions such as migraine,
tension headache, sinusitis and refractive errors of the eye can be easily
diagnosed. But one must also be able to identify conditions such as Paget’s
disease, Conn’s syndrome, Addison’s disease and Cushing’s syndrome which may make a
rare presentation in the form of a headache.
Subarachnoid hemorrhage mimics migraine: Subarachnoid hemorrhage occurs due to spontaneous bleeding in the
subarachnoid space. It presents with severe headache usually over the back,
vomiting, and neck stiffness and severe cases with stroke. Due to the onset
of sudden headache with vomiting it is often misdiagnosed as migraine or
tension headache and treated symptomatically with analgesics. Sometimes the symptoms
of headache, vomiting and neck stiffness favor meningitis. CT scan, lumbar
puncture, blood investigations are the required investigations. Early diagnosis
prevents mortality in these patients.
Migraine: Rare Types
Rare types of medical disorders and diseases in related medical areas:
Medical news summaries about misdiagnosis of Migraine:
The following medical news items
are relevant to misdiagnosis of Migraine:
General Misdiagnosis Articles
Read these general articles with an overview of misdiagnosis issues.
About misdiagnosis:
When checking for a misdiagnosis of Migraine
or confirming a diagnosis of Migraine,
it is useful to consider what other
medical conditions might be possible misdiagnoses or other alternative
conditions relevant to diagnosis.
These alternate diagnoses of Migraine may already have
been considered by your doctor or may need to be considered as possible
alternative diagnoses or candidates for misdiagnosis of Migraine.
For a general overview of misdiagnosis issues for all diseases,
see Overview of Misdiagnosis.
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