Hypertension Risk Found in Women with Migraine

Women with migraine have a higher relative risk of developing hypertension compared to women without migraine, according to a recent study. Researchers performed a prospective cohort study among 29,040 women without hypertension at baseline. Women were classified as having active migraine with aura, active migraine without aura, a past history of migraine, or no history of migraine. Incident hypertension was defined as new physician diagnosis or newly self-reported systolic or diastolic blood pressure ≥140 mmHg or ≥90 mmHg, respectively. They found:

• During a mean follow-up of 12.2 years, 15,176 incident hypertension cases occurred.
• Compared to those with no history of migraine, women who experience migraine with aura had a 9% increase in their risk of developing hypertension; women who experience migraine without aura had a 21% increase in their risk of developing hypertension; and women with a past history of migraine had a 15% increase in their risk of developing hypertension.

Migraine and the risk of incident hypertension among women. [Published online ahead of print February 1, 2018]. Cephalalgia. doi:10.1177/0333102418756865.