Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 17, 2026
10:39
3D-Neuronavigation In Vivo Through a Patient's Brain During a Spontaneous Migraine Headache
Published on: June 2, 2014
Migraine headache is present in the aura phase: a prospective study
Jakob M Hansen1, Richard B Lipton, David W Dodick
1Headache Research and Treatment Program, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA.
Neurology
|November 2, 2012
Summary
Migraine aura often includes headache and other symptoms like nausea and photophobia. These symptoms frequently occur early in the migraine attack, during the aura phase itself.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Clinical Neuroscience
Background:
- Migraine aura is traditionally viewed as a distinct phase preceding migraine headache.
- The precise timing of headache and associated symptoms relative to aura onset requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the temporal relationship between migraine aura and the onset of headache and other migraine symptoms.
- To analyze prospectively recorded data from a large cohort of patients experiencing migraine with aura.
Main Methods:
- Prospective data collection on 861 attacks of migraine with aura from 201 patients across 16 centers.
- Patients maintained headache diaries, recording symptoms within 1 hour of aura onset.
- Data gathered over two phases of a clinical trial.
Main Results:
- Headache was present during the aura phase in 73% of attacks.
- Nausea (51%) and photophobia (88%) were common during aura.
- Within 15 minutes of aura onset, 54% of patients reported migraine headache.
Conclusions:
- Headache and associated migraine symptoms frequently manifest early, during the aura phase.
- This challenges the traditional view of aura as solely a pre-headache phenomenon.
- Findings highlight the early and concurrent nature of symptoms in migraine with aura.
