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Current Aura Without Headache

  • Uncommon and/or Unusual Headaches and Syndromes (J Ailani, Section Editor)
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Current Pain and Headache Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Correction to this article was published on 20 October 2018

This article has been updated

Abstract

Purpose of Review

This review evaluates and explains our current understanding of a rare subtype of migraine, typical aura without headache, also known as migraine aura without headache or acephalgic migraine.

Recent Findings

Typical aura without headache is a known entity within the spectrum of migraine. Its pathophysiology is suggested to be similar to classic migraines, with cortical spreading depression leading to aura formation but without an associated headache. No clinical trials have been performed to evaluate treatment options, but case reports suggest that most patients will respond to the traditional treatments for migraine with aura. Bilateral greater occipital nerve blocks may be helpful in aborting migraine with prolonged aura. Transcranial magnetic stimulation has shown efficacy in aborting attacks of migraine with aura but has not been specifically tested in isolated aura.

Summary

Typical aura without headache occurs exclusively in 4% patients with migraine, and may take place at some point in 38% of patients with migraine with aura. Typical aura without headache commonly presents with visual aura without headache, brainstem aura without headache, and can also develop later in life, known as late-onset migraine accompaniment.

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Change history

  • 20 October 2018

    The original version of this article contains an error in the title. The title should be: Migraine Aura Without Headache. The title is corrected in this correction article.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, MC 9322, Dallas, TX, 75390-9322, USA

    Divya R. Shah & Deborah I. Friedman

  2. University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, TX, USA

    Sonam Dilwali

  3. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Sonam Dilwali

  4. Department of Ophthalmology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX, 75390, USA

    Deborah I. Friedman

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  1. Divya R. Shah
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Correspondence to Deborah I. Friedman.

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Conflict of Interest

Divya Shah and Sonam Dilwali declare no conflict of interest. Deborah Friedman, MD, MPH, has no relevant conflicts of interest to disclose. She has served on advisory boards for Allergan, Alder Biopharmaceuticals, Avanir, Amgen, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, electroCore, Eli Lilly, Supernus, Teva and Zosano. She speaks on behalf of Allergan, Amgen, Autonomic Technologies, Inc, electroCore, Supernus and Teva and has received research support through UT Southwestern from Autonomic Technologies, Inc, Eli Lilly, Merck and Zosano. She has received compensation for being on the editorial board for Neurology Reviews and as a contributing author to MedLink Neurology.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Uncommon and/or Unusual Headaches and Syndromes

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Shah, D.R., Dilwali, S. & Friedman, D.I. Current Aura Without Headache. Curr Pain Headache Rep 22, 77 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-018-0725-1

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