Clinical use of copeptin in migraine patients admitted to the emergency department

The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical use of copeptin to evaluate migraine attacks in the Emergency Department. An additional aim was to detect changes in serum copeptin levels in migraine patients during attack and attack-free periods.

This prospective case-control study included 52 migraine patients and 51 healthy individuals with similar demographic characteristics. Blood samples were collected from migraine patients both in attack and attack-free periods.

The mean copeptin levels in the patients group in the attack and attack-free periods were 689.28 and 576.68 pg/ml, respectively, whereas they were 608.68 pg/ml in the control group. There was a significant difference in the mean copeptin level in the attack period and attack-free periods (p = 0.026). The sensitivity and specificity of copeptin in detecting headache episodes in migraine patients were 58.8% and 60.7%, respectively, at a cut-off value of 388.67 pg/ml.

This is the first study to investigate the diagnostic efficacy of serum copeptin levels in migraine patients. Although the diagnostic efficacy of serum copeptin levels for migraines was unsatisfactory, it could be helpful at management of migraine patients in ED.