Migraine is an ancient disease with a recorded history as early as 1200 BC. It is one of the oldest ailments to have bothered mankind. The occurrence of headaches accompanied by vision disturbance is recorded in the medical documents of the ancient Egyptians. In 400 BC, Hippocrates had described the relief after having a headache along with blurred vision after vomiting, as “a release of bad vapors”. Treatments back then were based on superstition and limited medical understanding. The skulls of humans 9000 years ago have been found with holes drilled in it. Trepanation or the deliberate act of nonfatal drilling of holes in the skull, to allow evil spirits to escape, is evidence enough to prove the theory of witchcraft being considered as the cause of headache with neuralgia.

In the middle ages, it was considered a discrete disorder and treated with iron rods, draining of blood, and inserting garlic into an incision made in the temple to relieve the pain. Potions of vinegar and opium were a common medication for pain in those days. Later on, it was described as a condition that was associated with hormonal imbalances, especially in women, after delivery and during menopause. In 1712, a few types of headaches were identified. One of which is “megrim”, recognized today as migraine.

A few famous personalities who suffered from this condition are Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis Presley, John F. Kennedy, Julius Caesar, Napoleon Bonaparte, Sigmund Freud, and Vincent van Gogh who is said to have painted aura-like forms in a few of his works.

Migraines come in different forms and are basically the same type of headache but with differing severity of symptoms from person to person. The two major types of migraines are:

• Migraine without aura: This is a frequent and common type of migraine with symptoms being a severe, pulsating one-sided headache. In addition, there will be nausea, blurred vision, confusion, changes in mood, fatigue and severe sensitivity to light, sound, and smell. It usually comes on without warning and can affect an individual a few times in a year to a few times in a week.
• Migraine with aura:  Also known as classic migraine, this condition causes visual disturbances and other neurological symptoms to appear even before the actual headache sets in. Sometimes the aura sets in without a headache also. Nausea and sensitivity to light precede the headache.

Other types of migraine that can occur are:

• Migraine without headache:  Visual problems, nausea, and vomiting are the symptoms present without a headache.
• Migraine with brainstem aura:  Migraine and aura symptoms originate from the brainstem and cause a lack of coordination and dizziness.
• Retinal migraine:  A rare type of migraine which can cause vision loss or problems in one eye.
• Hemiplegic migraine:  A severe but rare type of migraine which can cause temporary paralysis on one side of the body.
• Chronic migraine: This is a migraine that occurs frequently with or without aura.

Formerly, many types of migraines which were thought to be distinctive disorders have now been classified as complications. Such complications can affect children too, who are at high risk of inheriting this genetic neurological disorder from close family members.