I have had migraines since I was seventeen.
There are two types: Classical and common. One is associated with an aura and one is not. I was completely debilitated with them lasting several days. It is known that migraines are caused by the blood vessels either constricting or dilating( I can't remember which)and the digestive system shuts down, which is why painkillers which are ingested orally do not work. I actually had an injection which worked wonders but cant be given to children.
Interestingly migraine is also associated with stress and perfectionism and sufferers are usually people who display these traits and internalise problems. There are triggers which if they are all present are likely to lead to a migraine.
Some common triggers are:
Hunger, fatigue, stress, certain foods(red wine, cheese, chocolate and monosodium glutomate)
I found that stress was the biggie for me. Is your son a worrier or under stress?
Also I have experience of melatonin. I was a psychiatric nurse and we used it to treat insomnia associated with agitation. It did not work. It was experimental at the time and not available for general use here in the uk.
I found it helpful to list factors going on at the time when my migraines were at their worst to see if some could be avoided.
Was it the trigeminal nerve? Trigeminal neuralgia is a painful condition which although not related to seizures is treated with an anti convulsant called(in the uk) carbamazepine. Also, just to muddy the waters further, sometimes they use anti depressants to treat migraine preventatively.
It may be that the neurologist is saying that the cluster headaches are caused by a trapped nerve?
Cluster headaches are sometimes treated with the same drugs used to treat migraine.
Hope this helps and best wishes to your son. Cluster headaches are extremely painful and debilitating and I hope you isolate the trigger.
P.s I can't see the link with seizures but I have been out of work now for three years and medicine does move on. Epileptic seizures are caused by a random discharge of electricity in the brain. There are many types and the medication used to treat them is getting more efective all the time. Often a drug is developed to treat one disorder and is found to successfully treat another. Viagra was originally developed to treat heart disease!
