STORY BYSpecially formulated contact lenses may be just what the doctor ordered to treat migraine headaches, if a recent study bears out.
Researchers at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston discovered that colored lenses versus control lenses may actually rid migraine suffers of their crippling pain.
"These contact lenses provide fast relief, but it doesn't work for everybody," says Dr. Thomas Prager, clinical professor of ophthalmology at the UT Medical School.
The discovery was made by one of Prager's colleagues, Kathleen Faathoff, a low-vision specialist at the medical school.
In the study designed by Prager, 40 study participants received control lenses and treatment lenses to demonstrate the effectiveness of the colored, soft contact lenses. Both sets of lenses were of similar density.
After receiving the control lenses, the study participants were given the treatment lenses. Many of the participants who received the treatment lenses said their migraine symptoms disappeared within 45 minutes.
Since Prager's team is still accepting volunteers into the clinical trial, exact description of the lens is not divulged.
Migraine headaches cause intense, pulsating pain usually in a localized area of the head. Side effects can include extreme sensitivity to sound and light, and nausea and vomiting. Some sufferers can predict a migraine attack when an aura - visual disturbances that appear as flashing lights or wavy lines - appears preceding the actual headache. Others have olfactory changes, such as smelling the scent of oranges.
Migraines are more common than you might think. According to the National Headache Foundation, 28 million Americans suffer from migraines. Migraines are three times more common in women than in men. One in four individuals in American households has migraines and sufferers lose more than 157 workdays a year.
For years, previous research has shown that migraines were caused by dilation of blood vessels in the head. Now, scientists believe that genetic defects in certain brain cells may be one of the culprits.
Are contact lenses the magic bullet in treating or even preventing migraines? Prager says a long-term study is needed to substantiate his team's early findings about contact lens therapy.
"These contact lenses are not a permanent fix," Prager says. "It appears that the visual cortex is involved in migraines, but we need to understand the mechanism and complete the study before we decide how to use this treatment."
If the study results are positive and the experimental contact lenses are approved and put on the market, Prager says the lenses could become an alternative form of treatment that doesn't involve medication for migraine sufferers.
"The treatment contact lenses may provide a safe and inexpensive option," Prager says. "It could empower patients to take control of their condition by interrupting or even preventing a migraine attack."
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Dr. Thomas Prager is a clinical professor of ophthalmology at the UT Medical School.
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Dr. Tasnime Akbaraly of University College London and her colleagues were interested if healthy eating could actually turn-the-tide and reverse metabolic syndrome, which is having 3 or more of the following risk factors: excess abdominal fat; high triglycerides, hypertension, low levels of HDL the “good” cholesterol, or type 2 diabetes. Having metabolic syndrome doubles a persons’ risk of heart disease and greatly increases the odds of developing type 2 diabetes.
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Five years into the study, nearly 50% no longer had metabolic syndrome. People who followed the AHEI guidelines the closest were nearly twice as likely to have reversed their metabolic syndrome. The results of the study were published in Diabetes Care, online July 29, 2010.
Dr. Alice Lichtenstein, an expert on diet and heart health from Tufts University in Boston who was not involved in the study said, "It's not about focusing on individual components of the diet, it's really the whole package, and that becomes important because it means that if one of the components of a healthy diet is to eat more fruits and vegetables, just buying a pill saying that there's a concentrated extract of fruits and vegetables is probably not what's going to help you."
Call and make an appointment with Wellness Coach Sam Hester, CWC, CPT, LWMC, at 713-500-3327. It's confidential and free. For more information on the wellness services provided, visit UT Counseling and WorkLife Services.
