Motion Sickness in Headache Patients

Abstract

Introduction: Headache is one of the most frequent consultations in neurology. Some patients with headache report intolerance to passive mobilization, associated with dizziness, nausea, vomiting, known as motion sickness. These symptoms are caused by a conflict between the systems: visual, vestibular and somatosensitive. Objective: To determine the prevalence of motion sickness in
patients who consult due to headache. Method: Cross-sectional, retrospective and descriptive study. It included patients over 18 years of age, who consulted for headache at the Headache Clinic, during the period from January 2 to June 30, 2017, through a structured interview. Results: Of a total of 266 patients: 62 (23.30%) presented motion sickness (mean age 41.5 years; 80.6% were
women). 14 described motion sickness only in childhood and 48 persisted with symptoms until the time of consultation. Among the patients with headache and motion sickness 52 (83.87%) presented migraine; 7 patients presented tension headaches; 2 in salvos; 1 undetermined The prevalence of migraine was higher in those who reported motion sickness only in childhood compared to
those who continued with motion sickness (85.7 vs. 56.25%, p = 0.045), 12.5% of patients with current motion sickness reported it as a migraine trigger, 204 patients did not have motion sickness (76.7%). Conclusion: We consider that in patients with headache it is important to identify motion sickness as it can be limiting and also be a migraine trigger. Its diagnosis and treatment would
improve the quality of life of our patients.