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Updated: Aug 23, 2025
3D-Neuronavigation In Vivo Through a Patient's Brain During a Spontaneous Migraine Headache
Published on: June 2, 2014
Meta-analytical evidence of functional and structural abnormalities associated with pain processing in migraine
Majdi Al Qawasmeh1, Yaman B Ahmed2, Ayah N Al-Bzour2
1Department of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
Background:
Migraine is a primary headache disorder that causes debilitating throbbing pain. Several functional MRI (fMRI) and voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies have been used to investigate the structural and functional alteration in migraine. Here, we aim to study the converged brain regions of functional and structural abnormalities in gray matter volume (GMV) associated with pain processing and management in migraineurs and healthy controls (HC).
Methods:
A systematic search through PubMed and Sleuth was carried out for peer-reviewed functional and structural neuroimaging studies on migraine patients and HC yielded a total of 1136 studies. We performed an activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analysis on VBM and pain stimulation task-based fMRI studies to investigate the converged areas of GMV and functional abnormalities between migraineurs and HC. We performed two subgroup analyses between migraine with aura (MwA) and migraine without aura (MwoA) relative to HC, and between chronic migraine (CM) and episodic migraine (EM) compared to HC.
Results:
The total sample included 16 fMRI and 22 VBM studies, consisting of 1295 migraine patients, compared to 995 HC. In fMRI analysis, ALE maps for pain stimulation tasks revealed hyperactivation in migraineurs in the substantia nigra compared to HC, whereas hypoactivation was seen in the cerebellum. For the VBM analysis, ALE clusters of increased GMV in migraineurs were observed in the parahippocampus and putamen nucleus. Whereas clusters of reduced GMV in migraineurs were seen in the frontal gyri. Compared to HC, MwoA patients showed a GMV reduction in the insula, and anterior cingulate, whereas MwA patients showed GMV reduction in the cerebellum, cingulate gyrus, and insula. CM patients showed decreased GMV in the precentral gyrus, whereas EM patients showed decreased GMV in the parahippocampus, and inferior frontal gyrus when compared to HC.
Conclusions:
Our findings represent a potential biomarker for the diagnosis and management of migraine, by showing clustered brain regions of abnormal patterns of activation and GMV changes between migraineurs and HC which might be associated with hyposensitivity to pain in migraineurs. Further studies are required to determine disease progression or therapeutic interventions' effect on migraine.
Insights
This study found that migraine patients show abnormal brain gray matter volume and function in regions related to pain processing. These brain changes may indicate hyposensitivity to pain in migraineurs, potentially serving as diagnostic biomarkers.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Neurology
- Pain Research
Background:
- Migraine is a debilitating primary headache disorder.
- Previous functional MRI (fMRI) and voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies have explored structural and functional brain alterations in migraine.
- This study investigates converged brain regions with functional and structural abnormalities in gray matter volume (GMV) related to pain processing in migraineurs versus healthy controls (HC).
Approach:
- A systematic literature search identified 1136 studies.
- Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) meta-analysis was performed on VBM and pain stimulation fMRI studies.
- Subgroup analyses compared migraine with aura (MwA) vs. migraine without aura (MwoA), and chronic migraine (CM) vs. episodic migraine (EM) against HC.
Key Points:
- Meta-analysis of 16 fMRI and 22 VBM studies (1295 migraineurs, 995 HC) revealed specific brain region alterations.
- fMRI showed hyperactivation in the substantia nigra and hypoactivation in the cerebellum in migraineurs.
- VBM identified increased GMV in the parahippocampus and putamen, and reduced GMV in frontal gyri in migraineurs.
Conclusions:
- Converged functional and structural brain abnormalities in migraineurs may be linked to pain hyposensitivity.
- Identified brain regions could serve as potential biomarkers for migraine diagnosis and management.
- Further research is needed to understand disease progression and treatment effects.
