EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. - When it comes to headaches there are 20 million migraine attacks that take place every day.
The trigger for a migraine can vary from person to person.
As
you watch a star athlete like Percy Harvin, it is hard to imagine that
after all the hits and grind of a season; it's a headache that takes him
out of the game.
Radwa Elkaffas can certainly empathize with the Vikings wide receiver
"It’s
not just a headache, people who don't have migraines don't understand,”
said Elkaffas. “Once you get a migraine you know exactly what you are
talking about."
Elkaffas has suffered from migraine for 10 years
now. It took a year to figure out how to get them under control, but she
still gets migraines twice a week.
On top of her daily medication, she has medication when the migraine comes on and a shot for the most severe cases.
"If it wasn't for all this medication, I don't know what I would be doing."
When
it comes to migraines, 17 percent of the population will suffer from a
migraine at some point in their life -- half of them by the time they
are 20 and 98 percent by 50.
Dr. Ron Tarrel is a neurologist at
Abbott Northwestern. He says it is not unusual that doctors have not
been able to control Harvin's episodes.
"Our treatments are not
perfect sometimes we get better control but bad headaches can break
through and they are a challenging problem for people who suffer from
them," said Dr. Tarrel.
When it comes to migraines, it's one of
the most frequent and common causes of people missing work. While they
can be unpredictable, Dr. Tarrel predicts Harvin will recover.
"Honestly, I don't think this should affect his season if this truly is related to migraine."