Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 28, 2026

3D-Neuronavigation In Vivo Through a Patient's Brain During a Spontaneous Migraine Headache
Published on: June 2, 2014
Migraine and coronary heart disease in women and men
Nancy R Cook1, Isabela M Benseñor, Paulo A Lotufo
1Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Insights
Migraine does not appear to increase the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) events in women or men. This study found no increased risk for major or total CHD after adjusting for other risk factors.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Migraine is linked to stroke risk, but its association with coronary heart disease (CHD) events is unclear.
- Conflicting data exist regarding migraine as a predictor of future CHD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate migraine as an independent risk factor for subsequent coronary heart disease (CHD) events.
- To evaluate this association in both women (Women's Health Study) and men (Physicians' Health Study).
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from the Women's Health Study (WHS) and the Physicians' Health Study (PHS).
- Primary endpoints included major CHD (nonfatal myocardial infarction or fatal CHD) and total CHD (major CHD plus angina and coronary revascularization).
- Statistical adjustment for other known CHD risk factors was performed.
Main Results:
- Migraine was not associated with an increased risk of major CHD in women (RR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.53 to 1.29) or men (RR, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.79 to 1.31).
- No increased risk for total CHD was observed in women (RR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.76 to 1.34) or men (RR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.82 to 1.18).
- Separate analyses showed no increased risk for myocardial infarction or angina.
Conclusions:
- Migraine is not associated with an increased risk of subsequent coronary heart disease events in women or men.
- These findings from large prospective studies suggest migraine is not a predictor of future CHD.
Objective:
We evaluated migraine as an independent risk factor for subsequent coronary heart disease (CHD) events among women in the Women's Health Study (WHS) and men in the Physicians' Health Study (PHS).
Background:
Although several studies have suggested that migraine is associated with increased risk of stroke, there are few and conflicting data on whether migraine predicts risk of future CHD events.
Methods:
The WHS is an ongoing randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of low-dose aspirin and vitamin E in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer in 39876 women health professionals aged > or =45 years in 1993, and the PHS is a completed randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of aspirin and beta-carotene in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer in 22071 men physicians aged 40 to 84 years in 1982. Primary endpoints were defined as major CHD (nonfatal myocardial infarction [MI] or fatal CHD) and total CHD (major CHD plus angina and coronary revascularization).
Results:
After adjusting for other CHD risk factors, female health professionals and male physicians reporting migraine were not at increased risk for subsequent major CHD (women: relative risk [RR], 0.83; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.53 to 1.29; men: RR, 1.02; 95% Cl, 0.79 to 1.31) or total CHD (women: RR, 1.01; 95% Cl, 0.76 to 1.34; men: RR, 0.98; 95% Cl, 0.82 to 1.18). When considered separately, there was also no increase in risk of MI or angina.
Conclusion:
These prospective data suggest that migraine is not associated with increased risk of subsequent CHD events in women or men.
Related Concept Videos
Coronary Artery Disease I: Introduction
Coronary Artery Disease IV: Preventive Measures
Psychoneuroimmunology: Cardiovascular Disease
A key area of focus in PNI is the relationship between stress and coronary...
Coronary Artery Disease III: Clinical Manifestations
Ischemic Heart Disease: Overview
Atherosclerosis, the primary malefactor, orchestrates this dangerous condition. It manifests as the accumulation of fatty deposits, akin to insidious plaques, within arterial walls. As time elapses, these plaques metamorphose, hardening and narrowing...
Coronary Artery Disease II: Pathophysiology
