Q: I am a 22 years old male suffering from basilar artery migraine for the past two years. I feel terribly confused before getting headaches. I am hypersensitive to light and sound. I am experiencing intellectual dullness also, which remains for a day and sometimes, more than a day. Now, I am unable to bear the after effects of headache - that is confusional state of mind. I forget things very often. How can basilar artery migraine be treated?

A:You have bad headaches. The headaches are preceded by confusional state and hypersensitivity to light and sound, which persists for a day or two along with intellectual dullness. You have not mentioned about the nature of headache. Is it hemicranial or covers the entire head? Is it throbbing or pulsatile? Do you feel sick or actually throw up during your headache? Does your activity get prohibited / inhibited during the attack? If answers to all these questions are yes, then it is likely that you have migraine. The type of migraine you are having conforms to basilar type migraine.

In basilar type migraine there are certain neurological dysfunction, which occurs prior to the onset of headache and are called aura. In basilar type migraine, aura symptoms originate from brainstem and / or bilateral hemispheres of brain simultaneously like dysarthia (difficulty in talking properly), vertigo (dizziness), tinnitus (ringing sensations in the ear), hyperacusis (sound appears louder upon hearing), diplopia (seeing single objects as double), ataxia (in coordination of gait), bilateral visual blurring in both temporal and nasal fields, bilateral simultaneous paresthesias (pins and needles sensation) and decreased level of consciousness with migraine headaches and without any motor weakness. However, a detailed neurological examination and possibly a scan and EEG are needed to exclude other causes. If it is a basilar type migraine, there are drugs available, which can be prescribed to prevent future attacks. You must consult a headache specialist.