Animal studies elsewhere show that electrically stimulating the trigeminal nerve, the major nerve leading from the brain to head and face, inflames the meninges. Traditional ideas on the origin of the pain looked at changes in blood flow to the head, particularly to the scalp. But Pappagallo has long suspected abnormalities in the meninges. There's no other way to explain something like this. For all the research done on migraines, the disorder remains enigmatic.
Scientists have only incomplete explanations for the overall cause.
The other symptoms some people experience with migraines, such as numbness, tingling or visual disturbances, likely involve areas of the brain, rather than meninges, Pappagallo says. The research was funded by Glaxo-Wellcome. Other researchers are Zsolt Szabo, Ph.D., Giuseppe Esposito, M.D., Anitha Lokesh and Lynette Velez.