Correlation between abnormal brain excitability and emotional symptomatology in paediatric migraine
M Valeriani1, F Galli, S Tarantino
1Headache Centre, Division of Neurology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesu, IRCCS, Rome Italy. m.valeriani@tiscali.it
Insights
Children with migraine and tension-type headache exhibit reduced brain habituation. This neurophysiological abnormality correlates with behavioral symptoms in migraineurs, suggesting a link between brain function and the migrainous condition.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pediatrics
- Psychology
Background:
- Migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) are common in children.
- Understanding the neurophysiological underpinnings of these conditions in pediatric populations is crucial.
- Behavioral and emotional symptoms often co-occur with headaches in children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlation between brain excitability and behavioral symptoms in children with migraine and TTH.
- To assess neurophysiological responses, specifically mismatch negativity (MMN) and P300 habituation, in pediatric headache patients.
- To explore the relationship between these neurophysiological measures and behavioral assessments.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) for behavioral assessment.
- Recorded mismatch negativity (MMN) and P300 event-related potentials across three blocks to measure habituation.
- Employed two-way ANOVA to analyze differences in habituation between migraineurs, TTH children, and controls.
Main Results:
- Significantly lower MMN and P300 habituation was observed in children with migraine and TTH compared to controls.
- Positive correlations were found between P300 habituation deficit and CBCL scores in migraineurs, but not in TTH patients.
- Migraineurs with more pronounced habituation deficits showed greater behavioral symptomatology.
Conclusions:
- This study reveals a correlation between neurophysiological abnormalities (reduced brain habituation) and emotional/behavioral symptoms in pediatric migraine.
- The findings suggest that emotional symptomatology may play a role in shaping the migrainous phenotype in children.
- This research highlights the potential interplay between central nervous system excitability and behavioral presentation in childhood headache disorders.
Abstract:
We investigated a possible correlation between brain excitability in children with migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) and their behavioural symptomatology, assessed by using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). The mismatch negativity (MMN) and P300 response were recorded in three successive blocks to test the amplitude reduction of each response from the first to the third block (habituation). MMN and P300 habituation was significantly lower in migraineurs and TTH children than in control subjects (two-way ANOVA: P < 0.05). In migraineurs, but not in TTH patients, significant positive correlations between the P300 habituation deficit and the CBCL scores were found (P < 0.05), meaning that the migraineurs with the most reduced habituation showed also the worst behavioural symptomatology. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study showing a correlation between neurophysiological abnormality and emotional symptomatology in migraine, suggesting a role of the latter in producing the migrainous phenotype.
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