Doc's Cluster Headache Journal

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Latitude Effect?

A while back a visitor mentioned in a post that people believe location in reference to the earths equator has some effect on cluster headaches. At the time, I had only heard that the theory existed, I had never seen any facts or real studies... A quick poke around seemed to indicate that its based mostly on anecdotal evidence at this point. I can still find no studies. That doesn't mean they don't exist, I didn't look very hard.

I tend to update my knowledge in waves... I am a bit like an Anne Rice vampire that buries himself for one hundred years until things change enough to be interesting... I have had this affliction for so long that its a bit depressing to hash over the stuff that doesn't seem to make any difference or hasn't been thoroughly researched. So every few years I go on a tear... usually because I get one too many REALLY bad cycles and I find out every new bit of information I can. By the end of it, I usually end up a little beaten up because nothing seems to be a firm answer or pertain to me and I begin wondering if I should switch neurologists again and crawl back beneath the surface.

Personally it seems a bit far fetched to me, but finding every bit of the puzzle helps. So this is a quick post to remind myself to look into it further when I am in "research mode" and also to tell people if I think my living in southern latitudes has had a positive effect on my headaches.

Now I would say that in my personal experience that I can NOT confirm the equator phenomena. I live in one of the southern most US states and when I travel I usually go north and spend good amounts of time in places like Boston, and Sandpoint Idaho, Squiem Washington, San Francisco, Victoria Canada and it seems to have the opposite effect. I have noticed I get less headaches... But the same was true when I went to Belize. Basically, when I leave home, I do better.

But then, I am too small of a sample (and I don't travel enough) to base any firm opinions on...

A lot of people seem to be moving because of this... believe me I understand, most of us will do anything for a chance to feel better. But I want to see data before I start packing my bags... because I sure can't go much further south unless I leave the U.S.A. and I really hate the heat. : )