Q. I have to wear glasses all the time. I get headaches and migraines a lot. Could my glasses be causing this pain?
A. Glasses that are of the wrong strength can lead to headaches, blurry vision and dizziness. It is important to have yearly eye exams and update corrective lens prescriptions. When patients develop more frequent migraine episodes, allodynia (abnormal pain response from stimuli that normally do not provoke pain) can occur and wearing glasses can be very painful for these patients. It is important to try to prevent episodic migraine from becoming chronic by employing lifestyle modification and preventive medication therapy to decrease the likelihood of central sensitization and the development of allodynia.
George R. Nissan, D.O.
North Texas Institute of Neurology and Headache
Plano, Texas
