Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine conducted a study of migraine sufferers (Neurology; February 2010). Questionnaires were given to over 6,000 people with migraines and over 5,000 people without. The results indicated a strong correlation between migraines and cardiovascular risk.

Richard B. Lipton and his colleagues found that those who suffered from aura (visual hallucinations) and migraines were three times as likely to experience heart attacks as those without migraines. Furthermore, migraine sufferers were more likely to have diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, all of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

One of the implications of this study is that doctors need to be aware of a migraine sufferer’s potential health risks, not only quality of  life issues.