Alterations in Brain Function After Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Migraine in Children and Adolescents

This basic mechanistic study examined the changes in brain activation and resting-state connectivity after 8 weeks of CBT in youth with migraine.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychological intervention that is effective in reducing pain in migraine patients. However, the neural mechanisms underlying CBT in adolescents with migraine are not yet known.

Eighteen adolescents with migraine (15 females, age 15.1 ± 2.1 years [mean ± SD]) completed 8 weekly CBT sessions. Before the first and after the final CBT session, participants underwent structural and resting-state blood-oxygen-level-dependent contrast MRI scans. Arterial spin labeling was also used to examine brain activation during the resting state. For connectivity analyses, the right and left amygdala were chosen as seed regions. Relationships of the time courses within these seeds with voxels across the whole brain were evaluated.

Headache frequency decreased from 15 ± 7.4 headaches per month before CBT to 10 ± 7.4 after CBT (P < .001). After CBT, greater brain activations in frontal regions involved in cognitive regulation of pain were found. In addition, after CBT increased connectivity between the amygdala and frontal regions was observed. Associations between brain activation and amygdalar connectivity with a reduction in headache frequency were also observed.

Alterations in brain function and amygdalar connectivity with areas involved in nociceptive processing, cognitive function, and emotional regulation may underlie the ability of CBT to aid in the prevention of headaches in migraine patients.