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Updated: May 21, 2026

3D-Neuronavigation In Vivo Through a Patient's Brain During a Spontaneous Migraine Headache
10:39

3D-Neuronavigation In Vivo Through a Patient's Brain During a Spontaneous Migraine Headache

Published on: June 2, 2014

Migraine and cardiovascular diseases

G Pierangeli1, G Giannini, V Favoni

  • 1IRCCS Bologna Institute of Neurological Sciences, University of Bologna, Via U Foscolo 7, 40123 Bologna, Italy. giulia.pierangeli@unibo.it

Neurological Sciences : Official Journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology
|May 31, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Migraine patients, especially those with aura, show higher rates of heart conditions like patent foramen ovale. The link between migraine and cardiovascular disease risk factors requires further investigation.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Cardiology
  • Vascular Medicine

Background:

  • Migraine exhibits complex associations with cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disorders.
  • Patients with migraine with aura have a higher prevalence of right-to-left shunts, such as patent foramen ovale and pulmonary arteriovenous malformations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the intricate relationship between migraine and cardiovascular anomalies.
  • To investigate the unsettled association between migraine, ischemic heart disease, and cardiovascular mortality.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on migraine and cardiovascular comorbidities.
  • Analysis of prevalence data for cardiac anomalies in migraineurs.
  • Examination of proposed physiopathological links and risk factor associations.

Main Results:

  • Increased prevalence of right-to-left shunts (patent foramen ovale, pulmonary arteriovenous malformations) observed in migraine with aura patients.
  • The connection between ischemic heart disease, cardiovascular mortality, and migraine remains inconclusive.
  • Ongoing debate centers on a direct physiopathological link versus shared risk factors.

Conclusions:

  • Migraine, particularly with aura, is associated with specific cardiac anomalies.
  • Further research is needed to clarify the relationship between migraine and cardiovascular disease, including mortality and risk factors.

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