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Temporal Changes in Affective Symptoms, Headache Burden, and Quality of Life Following rTMS Treatment in Migraine: A
Robert Zgarbura1, Alexandru Pavel2,3, Oana-Andreea Parliteanu4,5
1Psychiatry Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Carol Davila", 041914 Bucharest, Romania.
Background:
Migraine is frequently associated with anxiety, depression, and reduced quality of life, contributing to substantial functional impairment.
Objective:
To examine longitudinal changes in affective symptoms, headache-related burden, and quality of life following repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in individuals with migraine.
Methods:
In this one-arm longitudinal study, 32 adults with migraine underwent 10 sessions of rTMS. Anxiety (HAMA), depression (HAMD), and migraine-specific quality of life were assessed at baseline, post-treatment, and 3-month follow-up, while headache impact (HIT-6) and disability (MIDAS) were evaluated at baseline and post-treatment. Repeated-measures analyses and paired comparisons were conducted.
Results:
Significant improvements over time were observed for anxiety, depression, and quality of life (all p < 0.001). Anxiety showed progressive improvement through follow-up, while depressive symptoms improved early with further consolidation at 3 months. Migraine-related quality of life increased significantly across all timepoints. Headache impact and disability decreased significantly following treatment (both p < 0.001), with large effect sizes.
Conclusions:
rTMS was associated with improvements in affective symptoms, migraine-related burden, and quality of life. However, given the one-arm design, these findings should be interpreted cautiously. Controlled studies are needed to confirm these results.
