Question: Postmenopausal Migraineurs who feel estradiol patch is a trigger?
Answer:
Full Question:
How do you advise your postmenopausal migraine
patients who seem to feel their estradiol patch is one of their migraine
triggers? I've had migraines for several years. About a year ago I had to have a
hysterectomy with ovary removal causing sudden menopause. Since then, age 49,
I've been on 0.05 mg estradiol patch. Since menstrual migraines were a huge
problem for me before my hysterectomy and low-dose birth control pills always
weren't used because they always caused my migraines to worsen, I've been told
I'm "sensitive" to even small amounts of estrogen. Yet when I took the 0.025
estradiol patch all menopausal symptoms worsened, including migraines, after
approximately three weeks. The 0.075 patch was also tried and was too strong a
dose, causing breast tenderness, and my family doctor dropped me back down to
0.05 mg. Whom should I see to regulate my hormones to hopefully reduce my
migraines? Neither my gynecologist nor my neurologist seems to have expertise in
this area and I can't find anyone who does. Any ideas? Thanks! Hope.
Answer:
Dear Hope;
Sounds like you are exquisitely sensitive to estrogen with relationship to migraines. Don't know who to suggest. If this was Dallas, I have an endocrine colleague who is good with these things, as sometimes it's about progesterone or testosterone levels too.
Good luck,
Teri Robert and John Claude Krusz
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Published April 17, 2006
