MRI almost normal - teardrop image

[Jlisa]

I have UCTD. My Rheum. sent me to a Neur. re: neuropathy (top of foot), head burns and all over body muscle spasms who ordered an MRI of L5, C-Spine and Head. Not sure if problem is neurological or autoimmune. Lots of bad stuff ruled out which is good.

The MRI noted a tear drop shape on head MRI which the radiologist attributed to migraines. Sounds okay except I don't have migraines very often... maybe once or twice a year if that. Any idea what else it could be? Could it really be from migraines? Do migraines damage your brain?

[Jlisa]

Thank you for your insight. I am worried about a stroke, too. The last two times out of three my blood pressure was taken it was high for me. I am normally 110/70 but I was at 140/80. I am going to try and keep a better eye on it. I was also nervous those two days as I had procedures afterwards that I was anxious about. I am a wimp. So, I guess it could have been that, too.

[Jlisa]

Yes, I have headaches occasionally especially when my allergies are bothering me.

I don't get an aura before a headache but my grandmother and dad do. They get what I would define as a migraine although my grandma reports that she doesn't have any pain with hers, just an aura. My dad gets the painful ones and, like I mentioned, will get a bad one complete with pain and nausea but only once or twice a year if that.

I do get these warm spots on my head that seem to be in the area in question as well as other locations. Sort of a burning sensation that doesn't hurt but is uncomfortable. I also get that sensation in my fingers and toes. It is new for me. Maybe it has been going on for 5 - 6 months. It is not constant. It comes and goes. Could that be a migraine? I attributed the finger and toes burning sensation to something autoimmune . It happens mostly when I am cold.

My Rheum. referred me to Neur. to help sort out what was Rheum. and what was Neur. I suppose the autoimmune stuff makes me harder to diagnose.

[Godofredo MD]

Hi.

A radiologist's reading of an MRI is not absolute and always has to be correlated with clinical findings. The fact that your migraine symptoms only occur 1-2 time a year would make the relation less likely.

It was originally thought that migraines do not cause brain damage.  However, a fairly recent study on mice suggested that people with migraines might also be experiencing some brain damage due to brain cells swelling and becoming starved of oxygen, which can also shed some light into why migraine sufferers have a higher risk of stroke.

This is significant because, at present, the focus of migraine treatment is to reduce the pain, whereas the study suggests prevention should be the focus to prevent brain injury.

[Caliber2005]

Hi Jlisa,
Do you have frequent headaches?
Do you experience any aura before headaches?
Is there anybody in family who has similar kind of headache?
The pathophysiology of migraine appears to involve a relationship between brain metabolic and cerebrovascular dysfunction leading to activation of pain pathways. Migraine remains a clinical diagnosis; there is no reliable laboratory marker of disease.
Migraine per se does not damage brain.