Abstract

The vascular theory, the most classical theory for the pathophysiology of the migraine, has been raised during recent a few centuries. The key-point of vascular theory is that the aura symptoms are secondary to cerebral vasoconstriction-induced ischemia and the headache secondary to reactive hyperemia. The recent studies showed, however, that the pattern of regional cerebral blood flow(rCBF) is incompatible with spasm of major cerebral arteries. Although rCBF is entirely normal during attacks of migraine without aura, we have some evidences of dilatation of the ipsilateral middle cerebral artery during migraine attacks and normalization after treatment with sumatriptan. The vascular changes still remains as an important role in the pathophysiology of migraine. Korean Journal of Headache 1(1):1-5, 2000