Selective diffusion changes of the visual pathways in patients with migraine: a 3-T tractography study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Radiology
• Ophthalmology

Background:

• Migraine is a common neurological disorder.
• Migraine with aura (MA) is associated with visual disturbances.
• Structural brain changes in MA are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate optic radiation (OR) structural integrity in MA patients.
• To compare OR metrics between MA, migraine without aura (MoA), and control groups.
• To explore correlations between OR changes, clinical features, and MRI findings.

Main Methods:

• Diffusion tensor tractography (DTT) was used to analyze white matter (WM) structure.
• Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) of the OR were quantified.
• Corticospinal tract and corpus callosum served as control WM tracts.

Main Results:

• MA patients exhibited reduced OR fractional anisotropy (FA) compared to controls and MoA patients.
• Higher right OR mean diffusivity (MD) was observed in MA patients versus controls.
• No significant correlations were found between OR metrics and clinical or MRI data.

Conclusions:

• Diffusion tensor tractography reveals distinct structural alterations in the optic radiation of MA patients.
• These OR changes may represent a potential phenotypic biomarker for migraine with aura.
• The findings suggest that OR changes are intrinsic to MA and not solely related to clinical presentation or T2-visible lesions.