Does exercise make migraines worse and tension type headaches better?
Many non-pharmacological treatments have been implicated in the treatment of primary headache, with exercise being a common recommendation. In this review we first provide an overview of the relationship between exercise and primary headaches. We then review the physiology of pain modulation, with focus on the endogenous opioids, endocannabinoids, and neuropeptides calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and their associations with primary headache and exercise. Finally, we summarize current literature evaluating effects of exercise on primary headache in an effort to understand the benefits and disadvantages of exercise in primary headaches.
Stanford University School of Medicine, 291 Campus Drive Rm LK3C02, Li Ka Shing Building, 3rd floor, Dean's Office, MC 5216, Stanford, CA, 94305-5101, USA, nhindiye@stanford.edu.
Nada Ahmad
NA
Hindiyeh
John Claude
JC
Krusz
Robert Paul
RP
Cowan
D000208:Acute Disease; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide / Q000378:metabolism; D063388:Endocannabinoids / Q000378:metabolism; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011957:Receptors, Opioid / Q000378:metabolism; D018781:Tension-Type Headache / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy
D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D063388:Endocannabinoids; D011957:Receptors, Opioid; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide