Functional network hubs in vestibular migraine: a neuroimaging perspective

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Graph Theory Analysis
• Migraine Pathophysiology

Background:

• Vestibular migraine (VM) is a complex neurological disorder.
• Understanding the neural mechanisms of VM is crucial for diagnosis and treatment.
• Functional brain network alterations are implicated in migraine disorders.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify critical brain regions and functional networks in VM using resting-state fMRI and graph theory.
• To explore the association between these network hubs and clinical symptoms in VM.
• To elucidate the role of functional network hubs in VM pathophysiology.

Main Methods:

• Recruited VM patients, Migraine without Aura (MwoA) individuals, and healthy controls.
• Collected resting-state fMRI data and clinical/sociodemographic information.
• Applied graph theory analysis, focusing on hub nodes and network metrics (degree, betweenness, eigenvector centrality).

Main Results:

• VM and MwoA groups exhibited lower normalized rich-club coefficients than controls at 65% sparsity.
• Temporal, limbic, and frontal lobes were predominant rich-club regions in VM.
• Increased centrality in the right posterior parahippocampal gyrus was observed in VM patients.
• Hippocampal and parahippocampal centrality correlated positively with headache intensity, duration, and progression.

Conclusions:

• The hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus are identified as critical hub nodes in vestibular migraine.
• These hubs may be involved in emotional regulation, pain perception, and pain memory.
• Findings offer insights into VM neural mechanisms and potential diagnostic/therapeutic targets.