What is Basilar Migraine?

In 1961, Bickerstaff described basilar migraine as a rare variant of migraine affecting young women and girls and bearing a strong relationship with menses. Also known as basilar artery migraine, Bickerstaff’s migraine, and syncopal migraine, basilar migraine is also grouped by migraine literature with ophthalmoplegic and hemiplegic migraine under the heading of ‘complicated migraines.’

With the usual migraine female predominance, basilar migraine has since been shown to affect both sexes and all age groups. Headache Classification Committee of the International Headache Society described the basilar migraine as:

“A migraine with aura symptoms clearly origination from the brainstem or from both occipital lobes.”

What are the signs and symptoms of Basilar Migraine?

A throbbing, severe, acute occipital headache that may be confused with tension headaches is the sign of the headache phase of the basilar migraine. Vomiting and nausea that have a tendency to relieve the headache symptoms are usually experienced by the patients.

What are the risk factors associated with Basilar Migraine?

Ingestion of alcohol may exacerbate or precipitate basilar migraines. Family history of cardiovascular accident, the use of oral contraceptives, and smoking are the additional stroke risk factors that the patients of basilar migraines should be screened for.

What are the complications of Basilar Migraine?

The remote possibility of basilar artery infraction is the main complicated case of basilar migraines and is documented in current literature. Infarctions are among the most frequent causes of strokes in young adults and well-recognized complications of the more common forms of migraine.