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Visual Attention in Children With Migraine: The Importance of Prophylaxis
Thaís Rodrigues Villa1, Larissa M Agessi2, Andréa R C Moutran2
1Division of Investigation and Treatment of Headaches (DITH), Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery Federal University of São Paulo, UNIFESP, São Paulo, Brazil cvdiniz@terra.com.br.
Insights
Children with untreated migraine show poorer visual attention compared to healthy children. Migraine prophylaxis treatment appears to restore visual attention to normal levels, similar to controls.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Neuroscience
- Ophthalmology
Background:
- Migraine is a common neurological disorder affecting children.
- Visual attention deficits may be associated with migraine pathophysiology.
- Understanding these deficits is crucial for effective management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare visual attention in children with untreated migraine, migraine prophylaxis, and healthy controls.
- To investigate the impact of migraine prophylaxis on visual attention.
- To explore the relationship between migraine and visual attention performance.
Main Methods:
- Eighty-two children (8-12 years) were assessed.
- Groups included untreated migraine (n=30), migraine prophylaxis (n=22), and controls (n=30).
- Visual attention was evaluated using Trail Making Test (A & B), Letter-Cancellation Test, and Brazilian Visual Attention Test (3rd ed.).
Main Results:
- All groups performed within the normal range on attention tasks.
- Children with untreated migraine showed significantly worse performance on some visual attention tests compared to controls and prophylaxis groups.
- The migraine prophylaxis group performed comparably to the control group.
Conclusions:
- Untreated migraine may be associated with visual attention deficits in children.
- Prophylactic migraine treatment may reverse these attention deficits.
- Neurochemical changes in migraine pathophysiology could underlie visual attention impairments.
Abstract:
This study aimed to compare the visual attention performance of children newly diagnosed with migraine, children undergoing migraine prophylaxis, and a healthy control group. Eighty-two children aged 8 to 12 years were divided into 3 groups: untreated migraine (n = 30), migraine prophylaxis (n = 22), and control (n = 30). All were subjected to a visual attention assessment with the Trail Making Test parts A and B, Letter-Cancellation Test, and the Brazilian Visual Attention Test 3rd edition. Although performance in attention tasks was within the normal range in all groups, children with untreated migraine performed significantly worse in some visual attention tests than did the control children or children undergoing migraine prophylaxis. The migraine prophylaxis group performed as well as the control group. The deregulation of the neurochemical mechanisms underlying the physiopathology of migraine might induce visual attention deficits, but an effective prophylactic treatment might reverse migraine symptoms.
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