Prevalence of vertigo and dizziness in migraine patients and non-headache subjects

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of vertigo and dizziness in patients with migraine as compared to the control group without a headache.A total of 327 patients with migraine and the control group of 324 subjects were evaluated for vertiginous signs and dizziness, time of onset of the symptoms, frequency of the symptoms and temporal association of the symptoms with the migraine attack.More than half of the migraine patients had in their lifetime experienced a sense of vertigo or dizziness: 169 patients (51.7%), and 102 subjects (31.5%) in the control group.Vertigo symptoms were associated with a migraine attack always in 38 (22.5%), sometimes in 38 (22.5%) and were not associated in 93 (55.0%) patients.Patients having migraine with aura significantly more often have migraine attacks associated with symptoms of vertigo or dizziness.Our study, together with other similar studies, suggests that migraine should be considered in the differential diagnosis of vertigo.