No causal association between allergic rhinitis and migraine: a Mendelian randomization study

Area of Science:

• Genetics
• Epidemiology
• Neurology

Background:

• Allergic rhinitis (AR) and migraine are prevalent global health issues.
• Previous observational studies suggest a link between AR and migraine, but results are inconsistent.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential causal relationship between allergic rhinitis (AR) and migraine.
• To examine the causal association of AR with migraine subtypes: migraine with aura (MA) and migraine without aura (MO).

Main Methods:

• Utilized bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis.
• Employed inverse variance-weighted, weighted median, weighted mode, and MR-Egger methods for primary and supplementary analyses.
• Conducted sensitivity analyses including CAUSE, leave-one-out, Cochran's Q, MR-Egger intercept, and MR-PRESSO tests to ensure result robustness.

Main Results:

• No significant causal correlation was found between AR and the risk of any migraine (OR 0.816, P=0.394), MA (OR 0.690, P=0.384), or MO (OR 1.022, P=0.954).
• Reverse MR analysis also showed no causal effects of migraine or its subtypes on AR.
• Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of these findings.

Conclusions:

• This MR study found no clear causal association between allergic rhinitis and migraine risk.
• Further research is needed to understand the complex relationship between AR and migraine.