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Middle-aged patients with migraine at increased risk for stroke
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PHILADELPHIA – Middle-aged adults with migraine may have changes in cerebrovascular and systemic angiopathy that lead to increased risk for stroke, according to a study presented at American Headache Society Annual Scientific Meeting.
Ken Ikeda, MD, PhD , of the Toho University Omori Medical Center, Tokyo, and colleagues assessed cerebrovascular and pulse wave findings in 287 middle-aged adults with migraine who did not have typical CVD risk factors.
Researchers diagnosed migraine through direct interviews with patients and neurological examinations completed by a headache specialist. They compared vascular data between patients with migraine and age- and sex-matched control subjects without migraine.
Patients in the study underwent brain magnetic resonance angiographies and MRI. Plethysmography measured brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity and ankle brachial index.
Researchers included 287 patients with a mean age of 44 years in the study results. Of those, 215 were women, 72 were men, 56 had migraine with aura and 231 had migraine without aura.
Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity increased in all patients with migraine (P < .05) and migraine with aura patients (P < .01) compared with control patients. Researchers found that ankle brachial index did not significantly differ between the migraine and control groups.
Brain MRI and magnetic resonance angiographies revealed that patients with migraine had additional cerebral vascular changes that increase their risk for stroke.
“The distinct cerebrovascular and systemic angiopathy could contribute to higher risk of stroke and CVD in some migraineurs,” they wrote. – by Erin Michael
Reference:
Ikeda K, et al. Cerebral and systemic angiopathy in middle-aged people with migraine. Presented at: American Headache Society Annual Scientific Meeting; July 11-14, 2019; Philadelphia.
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