Migraines, the multiple sclerosis prodrome, and multiple sclerosis susceptibility.

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Previous studies suggest a link between migraines and multiple sclerosis (MS).
• The exact relationship, whether migraine increases MS risk or is a prodromal symptom, remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if migraines precede or increase the risk of developing MS.
• To investigate the temporal relationship between migraine onset and MS diagnosis.

Main Methods:

• A case-control study involving incident multiple sclerosis (MS) cases and matched controls.
• Structured interviews collected detailed headache and MS histories.
• Migraine diagnosis was based on the International Classification of Headache Disorders criteria; logistic regression analyzed associations.

Main Results:

• Migraine onset concurrent with or before MS onset occurred in 21.2% of MS cases versus 18.7% of controls.
• Migraine onset concurrently or 1 year before MS symptom onset was significantly more likely in MS cases (14.4%) than controls (6.6%).
• This association was not significant when migraine onset strictly preceded MS onset.

Conclusions:

• Migraine is associated with an increased odds of MS solely when migraines co-occur with MS onset.
• Findings suggest migraines are part of the symptom complex at MS onset.
• Migraines are unlikely to be a risk factor for or a prodromal symptom of MS.