What are vestibular migraines?
They’re a form of migraine with aura [visual disturbances], in which the aura consists of imbalance or the illusion of movement. Vertigo is the most common feature, and it’s usually defined as that illusion of movement, spinning, or swaying. What causes this type of headache? We know that as with other forms of migraine, people inherit a predisposition to migraine. Subtypes of migraines run in families, and vestibular migraines may. Beyond that, we don’t know the specific cause. When people get vertigo, sometimes it’s from disease in the inner ear and sometimes it’s a problem in the brain stem. But we think what happens with vestibular migraine is that there are changes in the brain stem—not in the inner ear—that give rise to the symptoms. Can vestibular migraines be prevented? There are medicines that can be taken daily to prevent migraine. Four drugs are approved for migraine prevention—Topamax (topiramate), Depakote (divalproex sodium), Inderal (propranolol), and Blocadren (timolol)
