Scientists find genes linked to migraines

(Image: Sasha Wolff from Grand Rapids, via Wikimedia Commons)

Migraines are acutely debilitating headaches - sometimes with an "aura", in which patients have the impression of seeing through frosted glass - that strike up to 20 percent of the population.

Scientists describe the condition, which is three to four times more common in women, as a brain disorder in which neurons, or brain cells, respond abnormally to stimuli.

The precise cause it unknown, but inheritance is thought to play a significant role. Read on.