Shunt-associated migraine responds favorably to atrial septal repair : A case-control study

• Published in: Stroke (1970) Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 430 - 434
• Main Authors: ANZOLA, Gian P, FRISONI, Giovanni B, MORANDI, Eva, CASILLI, Francesco, ONORATO, Eustaquio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hagerstown, MD Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 01.02.2006
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis of Variance; Biological and medical sciences; Cardiac Catheterization; Cardiac dysrhythmias; Cardiology. Vascular system; Cardiovascular system; Case-Control Studies; Female; Heart; Heart Atria - pathology; Heart Septal Defects, Atrial - surgery; Heart Septal Defects, Atrial - therapy; Heart Septum - pathology; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Migraine Disorders - etiology; Migraine Disorders - pathology; Migraine Disorders - therapy; Neurology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Postoperative Complications - etiology; Regression Analysis; Risk Factors; Severity of Illness Index; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome; Vascular diseases and vascular malformations of the nervous system; Vasodilator agents. Cerebral vasodilators; Stroke; Nervous system diseases; patent; Shunt; Respiratory disease; Persistent fetal circulation; Migraine; Cardiovascular disease; Foramen ovale; Case control study; Congenital disease; Pulmonary hypertension; Cerebral disorder; Vascular disease; Newborn diseases; Pain; Respiratory failure; Heart disease; Central nervous system disease; Ostium secundum; Cerebrovascular disease
• ISSN: 0039-2499; 1524-4628
• DOI: 10.1161/01.str.0000199082.07317.43

Transcatheter closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) has been reported to improve migraine in patients with cerebrovascular disorders in noncontrolled studies. The aim of the study was to compare the course of migraine assessed prospectively over a 12-month period in symptomatic (for cerebrovascular disease) and asymptomatic patients undergoing PFO closure and in patients with PFO treated medically. Twenty-three stroke symptomatic (SS; 39+/-10 years of age; males/females [M/F] 5/18) and 27 stroke asymptomatic (SA; 40+/-12 years of age; M/F 5/22) patients with migraine underwent PFO closure. Twenty-seven patients with migraine and PFO (controls [CTRLS]; 36+/-11 years of age; M/F 4/23) were followed up medically. Migraine severity was assessed at baseline with a scale that takes into account the frequency, duration, and intensity of the attacks and the occurrence of aura (score range 0 to 10). Six months later, the patients were given a structured diary to annotate monthly with the same scale the characteristics of the attacks for the next 6 months. By the end of 1 year, the migraine score was averaged for the last 6 months. Baseline severity of migraine did not differ between groups (6.3 to 6.1 and 6.7 in SS, SA, and CTRLS groups, respectively). At the 1-year assessment, the overall migraine score had significantly improved by 3.7 and 2.8 points in SS and SA, respectively (P<0.001 on repeated-measure ANOVA), whereas it had nonsignificantly worsened by 0.1 points in CTRLS. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the improvement in SS and SA was independent of migraine type, age, and cerebrovascular risk factors. Twenty-one of 21 patients with migraine with aura in the CTRLS group still had aura at the end of follow-up, whereas only 3 of 14 among SA and 4 of 19 among SS continued to have migraine preceded by aura (P<0.0001 on Fisher exact test). Compared with medical treatment, closure of PFO brings about a significant overall improvement in migraine. This seems to occur irrespective of migraine type and of previous cerebrovascular disease. In addition to the overall improvement, in migraine with aura, the occurrence of aura is dramatically reduced.