People with migraine more prone to hangover headaches

Washington, October 19 (ANI): Those suffering from migraine are more vulnerable to alcohol-induced headaches, according to a study.

Michael Oshinsky, Ph.D., assistant professor of Neurology at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, and a member of the Jefferson Headache Center team, along with Christina Maxwell, a Ph.D. student in the Neuroscience program, Jefferson College of Graduate Studies, compared the effects of alcohol on rats suffering from recurrent migraines with those that did not get headaches.

The researchers found that the rats that were induced with headaches through repeated stimulation of the brain's dura mater followed by alcohol suffered increased pain sensitivity later while no changes were observed in alcohol-induced sensitivity in the control groups.

"Our results suggest that dehydration or impurities in alcohol are not responsible for hangover headache," Dr. Oshinsky said.

"Since these rats were sufficiently hydrated and the alcohol they received contained no impurities, the alcohol itself or a metabolite must be causing the hangover-like headache.

These data confirm the clinical observation that people with migraine are more susceptible to alcohol-induced headaches," Dr. Oshinsky added.

The research is due to be presented at Neuroscience 2009, the Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, in Chicago. (ANI)