12:07pm UK, Sunday January 16, 2005

Thousands of migraine patients could be cured by an operation - on their heart.

New research has shown that a hole-in-the-heart defect is twice as common in the million or so Britons who suffer from migraines.

57 Hospital operation surgery doctors surgeons

Heart op could help

Now doctors are to run a trial to see whether patching up the holes will solve the problem. 

The hole in the heart's wall allows blood that should be going to the lungs to leak into the supply feeding the brain, boosting levels of the brain chemical serotonin.  

In the trial, which is backed by the Migraine Action Association, doctors will patch up up the hole with a surgical mesh in a one-hour keyhole operation.  

This attempt to restore normal blood circulation follows reports that some patients who have had the defect repaired for other medical reasons no longer have migraines.  

The heart defect affects a quarter of the population, although most are unaware of it. But it is twice as common in migraine sufferers.  

If the new study confirms that plugging the hole stops the headaches, it could revolutionise treatment for a condition that costs the nation 18 million working days every year.