Symptoms In Migraine Patients Research Articles

The relationship with restless legs syndrome, fibromyalgia, and depressive symptoms in migraine patients.

In this study, we aimed to investigate restless legs syndrome, depression, frequency of fibromyalgia and possible causes of its frequencies, and the relationships among these synergies and migraine's prodrome, aura, pain, and postdrome symptoms in patients with migraine. The study group included 200 patients previously or recently diagnosed with definite migraine and according to International Headache Society criteria and 200 healthy volunteers. All subjects underwent a medical interview to confirm restless legs syndrome and fibromyalgia, and they were asked to complete Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventory and "severity of restless legs syndrome inventory." The frequencies of depressive symptoms and fibromyalgia in the patients with migraine were higher than those of the control group. The mean age of the migraine patients with restless legs syndrome was also higher, and this group had migraine headache for a longer time. There was a statistically significant difference with regard to only generalized anxiety and traveler's distress, which were features of the migraine, between migraine patients with and without restless legs syndrome. Restless legs syndrome was more common in migraine patients with and without aura and in those with nonspecific white matter lesions in the cranial MRI. In our study, the greater frequency of restless legs syndrome, depressive symptoms, and fibromyalgia in the patients with migraine supports the role of dopamine, which is common to all three disorders. Interviews focused on these problems among migraine patients may help to decide on the best available treatment modality.

Non-headache symptoms in migraine patients

Migraine is one of the most common neurological disorders. In addition to severe headaches, non-headache symptoms associated with migraine attacks as well as co-morbid disorders frequently aggravate the disabling of migraine patients. Some of these symptoms are related to poor outcomes. In this review, we update the advances of studies on certain non-headache symptoms, including visual disturbance, gastrointestinal symptoms, allodynia, vestibular symptoms, and symptoms of co-morbid restless legs syndrome and psychiatric disorders.

The Trigeminovascular Pathway: Role of CGRP and CGRP Receptors in Migraine.

The trigeminal ganglion plays a key role in primary headache pathophysiology. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and CGRP receptors are expressed in trigeminal neurons that form C-fibers and A-fibers, respectively. In acute migraine and cluster headache attacks, there is release of CGRP into the cranial venous outflow. In addition, intravenous CGRP can induce migraine-like symptoms in migraine patients. These findings led to the development of anti-migraine therapies that inhibit CGRP action. Currently, CGRP receptor antagonists, the gepants, and monoclonal antibodies towards CGRP and the CGRP receptor are all showing positive relief of acute and chronic migraine in clinical trials. However, there is still much to learn about the role of CGRP and CGRP receptors in headache pathophysiology, the critical anatomical sites, peripheral or central, of anti-CGRP agents, and the potential involvement of CGRP-related peptides and receptors. This review provides a brief history of the discovery of the role of CGRP in migraine and highlights current progress in understanding the complexity of the trigeminovascular pathway and its peptide transmitters.

Cognitive behavioral therapy for chronic migraine

AimAlthough current standard treatment for migraine headache is medication, high levels of psychological comorbidity has led to migraine influencing by cognitive, emotional and environmental factors, as well as biological. Viewing migraine in a biopsychosocial framework introduces the possible utilisation of psychological treatment options, such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of CBT for chronic migraine.MethodologyThirty-five participants diagnosed as chronic migraine were recruited from Headache Clinic. According to inclusion criteria 14 participants, underwent bi-weekly lasting 30 minutes CBT sessions for 6 months, were administered Hamilton Anxiety Scale, Hamilton Depression Scale, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the Migraine Disability Assessment Scale (MİDAS) before and after CBT.FindingsNine of the participants were female and 5 male. Mean age of group was 34.35 ± 8.17. Duration of illness was 13.07 ± 7.18 and 12 of participants had the history of a psychiatry illness whose diagnoses were depression (7), anxiety disorder (4) and post-traumatic stress disorder (1). Nine of the patients had prophylactic migraine treatment. There were statistically significant difference in Hamilton Depression scores between before CBT (29.07 ± 7.74) and after CBT (14.21 ± 7.7); in Hamilton Anxiety scores before CBT (26.8 ± 11.7) and after CBT (11.7 ± 2.6); in VAS scores before CBT (8.07± 0.91) and after CBT (3.71 ± 1.32); in frequency of migraine attacks between before CBT (10.85 ± 3.50 day) and after CBT (4.92 ± 2.70 day) and in MİDAS before CBT (55.5 ± 20.4) and after CBT (20.12 ± 16.6) (P < 0.05).ConclusionCBT might reduce the severity of symptoms in migraine patients especially with the comorbidity of psychiatric illness.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Vestibüler şikayeti olmayan migren hastalarında kontralateral otoakustik emisyon süpresyonu

Objective: Our aim was to investigate contralateral suppression of otoacoustic emission for the evaluation of auditory reflex in patients with migraine which is a disease that may cause dysfunction of senso- rial modulation. Methods: Voluntary migraine patients without vestibular symptoms who consulted to Neurology Clinic, and diagnosed according to the IHS 2004 criteria, and healthy volunteers were included in the study. All volunteers underwent complete otorhinolaryngologic and pure- tone audiometric examinations. Thirty voluntary migraine patients with bilateral otoacoustic emission measurements, and 30 healthy volunteers matched in terms of age and sex were included in the study. Otoacoustic emission measurements were obtained with 65 dB SPL click stimulus with and without mask by masking with contralateral 50 dB SPL broad band noise. Responses were compared between two groups. Results: Positive result was obtained in suppression tests in 40 of 60 (67%) ears of healthy volunteers and in 30 of 60 (50%) ears of migraine patients. However, there was no statistically significant dif- ference between groups regarding positive suppression frequency and suppression values. Even though a statistically significant difference between migraine patients without vestibular involvement and con- trol group was not seen, there was a decrease in contralateral suppres- sion responses in the migraine group. Conclusion: Although it is statistically insignificant, we have demonstrat- ed that migraine patients without vestibular symptoms showed a decrease in the suppression values compared to the healthy volunteers. We believe that in new studies with larger series, contralateral otoacoustic emission suppression test can be used as an early tool to diagnose audiovestibular symptoms in migraine patients without any vestibular involvement.

Symptom dimensions of affective disorders in migraine patients

ObjectiveA strong association has been established between migraine and depression. However, this is the first study to differentiate in a large sample of migraine patients for symptom dimensions of the affective disorder spectrum. MethodsMigraine patients (n=3174) from the LUMINA (Leiden University Medical Centre Migraine Neuro-analysis Program) study and patients with current psychopathology (n=1129), past psychopathology (n=477), and healthy controls (n=561) from the NESDA (Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety) study, were compared for three symptom dimensions of depression and anxiety. The dimensions —lack of positive affect (depression specific); negative affect (nonspecific); and somatic arousal (anxiety specific)— were assessed by a shortened adaptation of the Mood and Anxiety Symptom Questionnaire (MASQ-D30). Within the migraine group, the association with migraine specific determinants was established. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted. ResultsMigraine patients differed significantly (p<0.001) from healthy controls for all three dimensions: Cohen's d effect sizes were 0.37 for lack of positive affect, 0.68 for negative affect, and 0.75 for somatic arousal. For the lack of positive affect and negative affect dimensions, migraine patients were predominantly similar to the past psychopathology group. For the somatic arousal dimension, migraine patients scores were more comparable with the current psychopathology group. Migraine specific determinants for high scores on all dimensions were high frequency of attacks and cutaneous allodynia during attacks. ConclusionThis study shows that affective symptoms in migraine patients are especially associated with the somatic arousal component.

Detecting Migraine in Patients with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Using Three Different Headache Measures.

Posttraumatic migraine may represent an important subtype of headache among the traumatic brain injury (TBI) population and is associated with increased recovery times. However, it is underdiagnosed in patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). This study examined the effectiveness of the self-administered Nine-Item Screener (Nine-Item Screener-SA), the Headache Impact Test- 6 (HIT-6), the 3-Item Migraine Screener, and the Rivermead Post-Concussion Questionnaire (RPQ) at discriminating between mTBI patients with (n = 23) and without (n = 20) migraines. The Nine-Item Screener demonstrated significant differences between migraine patients with and without migraine on nearly every question, especially on Question 9 (disability), sensitivity: 0.95 and specificity: 0.65 (95% CI, 0.64–0.90). The HIT-6 demonstrated significant differences between migraine and no-migraine patients on disability and pain severity, with disability having a sensitivity of 0.70 and specificity of 0.75 (95% CI, 0.54–0.83). Only Question 3 of the 3-Item ID Migraine Screener (photosensitivity) showed significant differences between migraine and no-migraine patients, sensitivity: 0.84 and specificity: 0.55 (CI, 0.52–0.82). The RPQ did not reveal greater symptoms in migraine patients compared with those without. Among headache measures, the Nine-Item Screener-SA best differentiated between mTBI patients with and without migraine. Disability may best identify migraine sufferers among the TBI population.

Gender influences headache characteristics with increasing age in migraine patients.

Migraine headache is one of the most common primary headache disorders and is three times more prevalent in women than in men, especially during the reproductive ages. The neurobiological basis of the female dominance has been partly established. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of gender on the headache manifestations in migraine patients. The study group consisted of 2082 adult patients from five different hospitals' tertiary care-based headache clinics. The relationship between headache characteristics and gender was evaluated in migraine with aura (MwA) and migraine without aura (MwoA). The duration, severity, frequency of headache and associated symptoms were evaluated in both genders and age-dependent variations and analyzed in two subgroups. Women with migraine were prone to significantly longer duration and intensity of headache attacks. Nausea, phonophobia and photophobia were more prevalent in women. Median headache duration was also longer in women than in men in MwA (p = 0.013) and MwoA (p < 0.001). Median headache intensity was higher in women than in men in MwA (p = 0.010) and MwoA (p = 0.009). The frequency of nausea was significantly higher in women than in men in MwA (p = 0.049). Throbbing headache quality and associated features (nausea, photophobia, and phonophobia) were significantly more frequent in women than in men in MwoA. The gender impact varied across age groups and significant changes were seen in female migraineurs after age 30. No age-dependent variation was observed in male migraineurs. Gender has an influence on the characteristics of the headache as well as on the associated symptoms in migraine patients, and this impact varies across the age groups, particularly in women.

Regional Homogeneity Abnormalities Affected by Depressive Symptoms in Migraine Patients without Aura: A Resting State Study

BackgroundBidirectional relationship between migraine and depression suggests that there might be some etiological risk factors shared. However, few studies investigated resting state abnormalities affected by depressive symptoms in migraine patients without aura (MWoA).Materials and MethodsAccording to their self-rating depression scale (SDS) score, MWoA were divided into twenty in the SDS (+) (SDS > 49) group and 20 in the SDS (−) (SDS ≤ 49) group. Regional homogeneity (ReHo) method were employed to assess local features of spontaneous brain activity between 1) all MWoA and healthy controls, 2) each subgroup and healthy controls, and 3) SDS (−) group and SDS (+) group.ResultsCompared with healthy controls, decreased ReHo in similar regions were shown in the MWoA group and subgroups. It is noteworthy that the caudate showed increased ReHo in the SDS (−) group compared with healthy controls and the SDS (+) group. Moreover, the average ReHo values of the caudate in SDS (−) group were significantly positively correlated with duration of migraine.ConclusionsOur results suggested that ReHo patterns in migraine patients may be affected by depressive symptoms and serve as a biomarker to reflect depression severity in MWoA.

The levels of anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive symptoms in migraine patients

Objective: Psychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety and depression, are seen more in migraine patients than general population. Establishing of these symptoms is important in terms of successful management. The aim of our study is to compare the levels of anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms between migraine patients and normal population and between migraine with aura and migraine without aura and to detect the relationship of the levels of these disorders with duration of disease and frequency of the attacks . Method: We included 66 male migraine patients (13 with aura; 53 without aura) diagnosed according to the diagnostic criteria of The International Headache Society-2004 (IHS 2004) in our neurology outpatient clinic and 32 healthy males with similar age and education level. Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Question List (MOCQL) had been applied to both groups by a psychologist. The frequency of the attacks in migraine group was accepted as rare if it was less than 4 in a month and frequent if it was more than 5 in a month. The inventory results of migraine patients vs. normal population and migraine with aura vs. migraine without aura had been compared and the relationship of the scores with the duration of the disease and the frequency of the attacks had been examined. Results: The scores of anxiety were higher but statistically insignificant in migraine group. The scores of MOCQL were statistically insignificant between the groups, but depression was found to be significantly higher in the migraine group. There was no significant correlation between the duration of the disease and depression, whereas patients with frequent attacks (more than 5 in a month) had higher levels of depressive symptoms. All test scores of migraine with aura and migraine without aura are similar. There was no difference in terms of BAI and MOCQL between patients having frequent attacks and rare attacks. Depression and anxiety levels were significantly related to each other in a strong positive way. Conclusion: Levels of depressive symptoms is high in migraine patients and its frequency increases as the frequency of the attacks increase. There is no relationship between levels of depressive symptoms and disease duration in migraine patients; whereas levels of depression symptoms and anxiety levels has a positive relation. It is important to examine and treat the anxiety and depressive symptoms in migraine patients.

Premonitory symptoms in migraine patients

Premonitory symptoms in migraine patients

A Comparison of Migraine Patients With and Without Allodynic Symptoms

Although the association of symptoms of allodynia with migraine have been reported, there is a paucity of studies on Asians. To evaluate allodynic symptoms in migraine patients and its relationship with various clinical variables. Consecutive migraine patients meeting the International Headache Society criteria were evaluated. Frequency, duration of illness, precipitating factors and severity of headache, associated symptoms, and functional disability were noted. Presence of allodynic symptoms and its distribution were recorded and correlated with demographic and clinical variables. One hundred eighty-two consecutive patients with migraine without aura were included. Mean age was 30.7 years and 51 of the patients were males. Allodynic symptoms were present in 57.1%, which were triggered by various stimuli. In majority of patients, allodynic symptoms were induced by multiple stimuli. Symptoms of allodynia were restricted to the initial site of headache in 32.7%, holocranial in 46.2% and cephalic and extracephalic in 21.1% patients. Duration, frequency of migraine attacks, and functional disability were significantly associated with allodynic symptoms. Rizatriptan resulted in better relief of headache at 2 hours compared with ibuprofen in allodynic patients. Allodynic symptoms occurred in 57.1% patients with migraine. In allodynic patients with moderate-to-severe headache, rizatriptan resulted in greater pain relief compared with ibuprofen. These results need further confirmation in larger study.

High prevalence of Dopaminergic Premonitory Symptoms in migraine patients with Restless Legs Syndrome: a pathogenetic link?

In order to assess the prevalence of Dopaminergic Premonitory Symptoms (DPS) in migraine patients with Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS), we chose migraine patients from a large Italian clinical headache population previously investigated for an association between primary headaches and RLS. We evaluated a total sample of 164 patients with migraine, in particular 114 with migraine without aura (MO), 10 with migraine with aura (MA) and 40 with MO and MA in various combinations between them or with episodic tension-type headache (ETTH), defined as a "mixed group". About 20% of all migraine patients referred at least one of the following DPS: yawning, nausea, somnolence or food craving, confirming data already indicated in the literature. Among migraine patients with RLS (25.6%), DPS were referred from about half of the patients (47.6%) compared to those without RLS (47.6% vs. 13.1%; p<0.001). Based on migraine subtype, patients with MO referred DPS (26.3%) more frequently compared to the MA group and "mixed group" (12.0%, p<0.05), particularly in the presence of RLS (63.0% vs. 20.0%, p<0.01). No statistical differences were found between clinical and demographic data of the subgroups or related to medical conditions investigated (anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, body mass index). It is interesting that the chances of having RLS in migraine patients were more than 5 times higher in the presence of DPS. These results could support a hypothetical dopaminergic imbalance in RLS and migraine, as the dopamine is involved in the pathogenesis of both disorders and it is responsible for the migraine DPS reported above.