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What Is a Refractive Migraine?

There are many types of migraines. Two types are "common migraine," a migraine that ensues without "aura" or visual distortion, and "classic migraine," which may cause an aura. Another, more severe type is "refractive migraine," more usually termed "refractory migraine"---or RM.

  1. Definition

    • Refractive or refractory migraine, also termed an "intractable" migraine, is so-called because it does not respond to standard migraine treatments, according to a HealthCentral website on treating RM. The incapacitating pain of RM may also last longer than the usual four-to-72-hour migraine attack.

    Status Migrainous

    • RM that does not respond to normal treatment and lasts longer than 72 hours can progress to a type of migraine known as "status migrainous," according to a HealthCentral article titled "Status Migrainous---the Basics," by Teri Robert.

    Importance of Treatment

    • Migraine pain is triggered by the dilation or expansion of certain blood vessels within the human brain, as well as tissue and nerve inflammation, according to the HealthCentral article. When blood vessels are dilated over a longer period of time, as with RM and status migrainous, the migraine sufferer may develop risk of stroke.

    Clinical Study

    • According to a HealthCentral article titled, "IV Lidocaine-Effective Treatment for Refractory Migraines in the Clinic," by Teri Robert and Dr. John Claude Krusz, presented to the American Headache Society Annual Meeting in June 2007, the painkiller lidocaine was administered intravenously to 22 patients with RM during a clinical study in 2007.

    Results

    • According to the HealthCentral article, the results of the study Robert and Krusz demonstrated that the treatment using lidocaine under clinical supervision helped ease migraine pain and shortened its duration for patients with RM.

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