Disrupted Dynamic Functional Connectivity of the Visual Network in Episodic Patients with Migraine without Aura

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Medical Imaging
• Clinical Neurology

Background:

• Visual symptoms are frequently reported in migraine patients, even between attacks.
• Migraine without aura (MwoA) is a common neurological disorder characterized by recurrent headaches.
• Understanding the neural underpinnings of visual disturbances in MwoA is crucial for effective management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) of the visual cortex and clinical features in MwoA patients.
• To explore alterations in regional brain activity within the visual cortex in MwoA.
• To determine if these brain changes correlate with disease duration, headache frequency, or anxiety levels.

Main Methods:

• Fifty-five MwoA patients and fifty matched healthy controls were recruited.
• Regional homogeneity (ReHo) and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) were used to assess visual cortex activity.
• Dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) was analyzed between the visual cortex and the whole brain using significant regions as seeds.

Main Results:

• MwoA patients displayed reduced ReHo and ALFF in the right lingual gyrus (LG) and increased ALFF in the prefrontal cortex compared to controls.
• The right LG showed abnormal dFC within the visual cortex and with other brain networks.
• Abnormal dFC of the right LG with the cuneus correlated positively with anxiety scores, while LG ReHo correlated with disease duration.

Conclusions:

• Dynamic functional connectivity abnormalities in the visual cortex are present in MwoA patients.
• These dFC alterations may play a role in the integration of pain signals across multiple brain networks.
• Visual cortex dFC changes are associated with anxiety disorder in episodic MwoA, suggesting a link between visual processing and psychological comorbidities.