Migraine sufferers prone to leg clots: study

By Julie Steenhuysen

CHICAGO (Reuters) - People who get migraines may also be at higher risk for blood clots in their legs, researchers said on Monday.

The finding, reported in the journal Neurology, may help explain why migraine sufferers have a higher risk of stroke.

Researchers had thought that people who get migraines were more prone to a buildup of fatty deposits in the arteries, but Dr. Stefan Kiechl of Innsbruck Medical University in Austria said that is likely not the case.

Kiechl and colleagues studied 574 people in Italy who were 55 or older. They took ultrasound images of their necks and thighs to look for hardening of the arteries.

Some 111 of those were migraine sufferers, and among these, 19 percent had one or more leg clots compared with just 8 percent in the migraine-free group.

Leg clots, also known as deep vein thrombosis, cause pain and swelling and can prove deadly if they break off and travel to the heart or lungs.

The researchers said it is not clear why people who get migraines are at higher risk for such clots.

What is clear is that they are not more likely to have atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries, brought on by a build-up of fatty plaques.