Altered brain function in patients with vestibular migraine: a study on resting state functional connectivity

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Neuroimaging
• Clinical Neurology

Background:

• Vestibular migraine (VM) is a neurological disorder characterized by recurrent vertigo and migraine symptoms.
• The underlying brain mechanisms of VM remain incompletely understood.
• Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) offers a non-invasive method to investigate brain function.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize alterations in brain function in patients with vestibular migraine (VM).
• To investigate functional connectivity (FC) and functional network connectivity (FNC) in VM patients compared to healthy controls (HC).
• To explore correlations between altered brain connectivity and clinical/behavioral measures in VM.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study involving 40 VM patients and 40 HC, collecting fMRI data, clinical characteristics, and behavioral scales.
• Exclusion of peripheral vestibular lesions, focal lesions, and other neurological diseases through comprehensive examinations.
• Analysis using seed-based FC (bilateral parietal operculum cortex 2, OP2) and independent component analysis (ICA)-based FNC.

Main Results:

• VM patients exhibited altered FC between the left OP2 and the precuneus (increased) and anterior cingulate cortex (decreased).
• Increased FC was observed between the right OP2 and the middle frontal gyrus/precuneus, with decreased bilateral OP2 FC.
• VM patients showed decreased FNC between the visual network (VN) and auditory/default mode networks, and increased FNC with the executive control network.

Conclusions:

• The study demonstrates significant alterations in brain function and connectivity in patients with vestibular migraine.
• These findings highlight the role of disrupted large-scale brain networks in the pathophysiology of VM.
• Altered connectivity, particularly involving the OP2 region, may correlate with the subjective experience of dizziness in VM.