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Visual evoked potentials and serum magnesium levels in juvenile migraine patients
P Aloisi1, A Marrelli, C Porto
1Servizio di Neurofisiopatologia, University of L'Aquila, Italy.
Insights
Migraine patients often show abnormal visual evoked potentials and low magnesium. Supplementing with magnesium pidolate normalized magnesium levels and reduced visual evoked potential amplitude, suggesting a link to neuronal hyperexcitability.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Migraine is associated with altered visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and reduced intracellular magnesium.
- These changes occur both during migraine attacks and between them.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlation between VEPs and serum magnesium levels in children with migraine.
- To evaluate the efficacy of magnesium pidolate treatment in normalizing magnesium balance and VEPs.
Main Methods:
- Assessed VEPs (specifically P100 amplitude) and serum magnesium levels in children with migraine during headache-free periods.
- Administered oral magnesium pidolate for 20 days.
- Re-evaluated VEPs and magnesium levels post-treatment.
Main Results:
- Found an inverse correlation between increased P100 amplitude and low serum magnesium in children with migraine.
- Magnesium pidolate treatment normalized magnesium balance in 90% of patients.
- Post-treatment, reduced P100 amplitude confirmed the inverse correlation with normalized serum magnesium.
Conclusions:
- Elevated VEP amplitude and low brain magnesium may indicate neuronal hyperexcitability in visual pathways.
- This hyperexcitability could contribute to a lower threshold for migraine attacks.
- Magnesium supplementation may help manage migraine by addressing neuronal hyperexcitability.
Abstract:
Changes in visual evoked potentials and decreased intracellular magnesium levels have been separately described in patients affected by migraine both during the attacks and in the interictal periods. An inverse correlation between increased P100 amplitude and lowered serum magnesium levels was found in children suffering from migraine with and without aura in a headache-free period. A 20-day treatment with oral magnesium pidolate seemed to normalize the magnesium balance in 90% of patients. After treatment, the reduced P100 amplitude confirmed the inverse correlation with the serum magnesium level. These data seem to suggest the hypothesis that higher visual evoked potential amplitude and low brain magnesium level can both be an expression of neuronal hyperexcitability of the visual pathways related to a lowered threshold for migraine attacks.