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Hoots : Can lumbar/sacral/thoracic spinal injury cause migraines? I heard of a case where someone suffered severe migraines after a lumbar puncture. There are two possible explanations. Firstly, the low CSF [cerebrospinal fluid] - freshhoot.com

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Can lumbar/sacral/thoracic spinal injury cause migraines?
I heard of a case where someone suffered severe migraines after a lumbar puncture.

There are two possible explanations. Firstly, the low CSF [cerebrospinal fluid] volume depletes the cushion of fluid supporting the brain and its sensitive meningeal vascular coverings, resulting in gravitational traction on the pain?sensitive intracranial structures causing classical headache, which worsens when the patient is upright and is relieved on lying down [Hatfalvi, B. I. (1995)]. Secondly, the decrease in CSF volume may activate adenosine receptors directly, causing cerebral vasodilatation and stretching of pain?sensitive cerebral structures, resulting in headache after lumbar puncture [Fearon, W. (1993)].

This made me wonder if it would be plausible that spinal problems such as spinal compression could cause migraines?
References
Fearon, W. (1993). Post-lumbar puncture headache. P&S Medical Review, 1, 1.
Hatfalvi, B. I. (1995). Postulated mechanisms for postdural puncture headache and review of laboratory models: clinical experience. Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, 20(4), 329-336. PMID: 7577782
Linked article:
Ahmed, S. V., Jayawarna, C., & Jude, E. (2006). Post lumbar puncture headache: diagnosis and management. Postgraduate medical journal, 82(973), 713-716. doi: 10.1136/pgmj.2006.044792 PubMed Central Free Article: PMC2660496


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The headache after lumbar puncture is common (~30%) and is not migraine headache. The mechanism is not entirely clear but likely involves a drop of cerebrospinal fluid volume and/or pressure (PubMed):

There are two possible explanations. Firstly, the low CSF
[cerebrospinal fluid] volume depletes the cushion of fluid supporting
the brain and its sensitive meningeal vascular coverings, resulting in
gravitational traction on the pain?sensitive intracranial structures
causing classical headache, which worsens when the patient is upright
and is relieved on lying down. Secondly, the decrease in CSF volume
may activate adenosine receptors directly, causing cerebral
vasodilatation and stretching of pain?sensitive cerebral structures,
resulting in headache after lumbar puncture.

Also:

According to the Headache Classification Committee of the
International Headache Society, headache after lumbar puncture is
defined as “bilateral headaches that develop within 7?days after an
lumbar puncture and disappears within 14?days. The headache worsens
within 15?min of resuming the upright position, disappears or improves
within 30?min of resuming the recumbent position”. This definition
helps to avoid confusion with migraine or simple headache after lumbar
puncture.

A herniated disc that puts pressure on the spinal nerves or spinal cord in the neck (cervical spinal stenosis) can cause "cervicogenic headache." This headache is also not migraine headache and

is characterized by unilateral headache symptoms arising from the neck
that radiate to the frontal-temporal and possibly to the supraorbital
region.

Mechanism (StatPearls):

A cervicogenic headache is thought to be referred pain arising from
irritation caused by cervical structures innervated by spinal nerves
C1, C2, and C3.

A herniated disc or spinal stenosis in the thoracic, lumbar or sacral region as such does not likely cause headache, but it rarely can, if the disc cuts the dura mater and causes CFS leakage leading to spontaneous intracranial hypotension (PubMed).

I maybe jumped too much on the term "migraine," but I wanted to be accurate. The exact definitions of various types of headache are here: The International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd edition (2018).


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