migraine
Research Papers
Showing 6 of 11Resting-state quantitative spectral patterns in migraine during ictal phase reveal deviant brain oscillations: Potential role of density spectral array
Background. Migraine headache may have a substantial bearing on the brain functions and rhythms. Electrophysiological methods can detect changes in brain oscillation. The present work examined the frequency band power through quantitative electroencephalogram (qEEG) and density spectral array (DSA) to elucidate the resting state neuronal oscillations in migraine. Methods. Clinical details were inquired, and EEG was recorded in migraineurs and healthy controls. The acquired data were analyzed to determine power spectral density values and obtain DSA graphs. The absolute and relative powers for the alpha, theta, and delta frequencies in frontocentral, parieto-occipital, and temporal regions were determined. A correlation of significant EEG findings with clinical features of migraine was sought. Results. Forty-five participants were enrolled in the study. The spectrum analysis revealed an increase in the relative theta power (P < .001) and a reduction in relative alpha power (P < .001) in the observed cortical areas among the migraineurs as compared to the healthy controls. Relative delta power was increased over the frontocentral region (P = .001), slightly more on the symptomatic side of the head. In addition, frontocentral delta power had a moderate positive correlation (r = .697, n = 22, P = .000) with migraine severity. Conclusion. The study supports the evidence of a neuronal dysfunction existing in the resting state during the ictal phase of migraine. qEEG can reveal these aberrant oscillations. Utility of DSA to depict the changes in brain activity in migraine is a potential area for research. The information can help formulate new therapeutic strategies towards alteration in cortical excitability using brain stimulation techniques.
View Full Paper →Neuroscience Education as Therapy for Migraine and Overlapping Pain Conditions: A Scoping Review
BACKGROUND: Neuroscience education therapy (NET) has been successfully used for numerous overlapping pain conditions, but few studies have investigated NET for migraine. OBJECTIVE: We sought to 1) review the literature on NET used for the treatment of various pain conditions to assess how NET has been studied thus far and 2) recommend considerations for future research of NET for the treatment of migraine. DESIGN/METHODS: Following the PRISMA guideline for scoping reviews, co-author (TR), a medical librarian, searched the MEDLINE, PsychInfo, Embase, and Cochrane Central Clinical Trials Registry databases for peer-reviewed articles describing NET to treat migraine and other chronic pain conditions. Each citation was reviewed by two trained independent reviewers. Conflicts were resolved through consensus. RESULTS: Overall, a NET curriculum consists of the following topics: pain does not equate to injury, pain is generated in the brain, perception, genetics, reward systems, fear, brain plasticity, and placebo/nocebo effects. Delivered through individual, group, or a combination of individual and group sessions, NET treatments often incorporate exercise programs and/or components of other evidence-based behavioral treatments. NET has significantly reduced catastrophizing, kinesiophobia, pain intensity, and disability in overlapping pain conditions. In migraine-specific studies, when implemented together with traditional pharmacological treatments, NET has emerged as a promising therapy by reducing migraine days, pain intensity and duration, and acute medication intake. CONCLUSION: NET is an established treatment for pain conditions, and future research should focus on refining NET for migraine, examining delivery modality, dosage, components of other behavioral therapies to integrate, and migraine-specific NET curricula.
View Full Paper →An update on EEG in migraine
Introduction: In the past few years, brain functional analysis has provided scientific evidence supporting the neuronal basis of migraine. The role of electroencephalography (EEG) in detecting subtle dysfunctions in sensory temporal processing has been fully reevaluated, thanks to advances in methods of quantitative analysis. However, the diagnostic value of EEG in migraine is very low, and migraine diagnosis is completely based on clinical criteria, while the utility of EEG in migraine pathophysiology has only been confirmed in more recent applications. Areas covered: The present review focuses on the few situations in which EEG may provide diagnostic utility, and on the numerous and intriguing applications of novel analysis, based on time-related changes in neuronal network oscillations and functional connectivity. Expert opinion: Although routine EEG is not particularly useful for the clinical assessment of migraine, novel methods of analysis, mostly based on functional connectivity, could improve knowledge of the migraine brain. Application is worthy of promotion and improvement in support of neuroimaging data to shed light on migraine mechanisms and support the rationale for therapeutic approaches.
View Full Paper →Passive Infrared Hemoencephalography (pIR HEG) for the Treatment of Migraine without Aura
Objective: To evaluate the impact of Passive Infrared Hemoencephalography (pIR HEG) in reducing headacherelated disability in adults with migraine without aura (MWOA). Methods: This quasi-experimental study enrolled 31 adults (M age = 38.65 years, range = 20-65 years) who met the International Classification of Headache Disorders (2nd ed.) criteria for migraine without aura (MWOA; IHS, 2004). All participants received the treatment. Participants completed a 10-week protocol of pIR HEG. Changes in headache impact were assessed at three points in time: baseline, after six treatment sessions, and after 10 treatment sessions. Outcome Measures: Headache Impact Test (HIT-6) and the Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS) questionnaire. Results: Significant reductions in HIT-6 scores were found between Pretest and Midtreatment, p < .001, and between Pretest and Posttest, p < .001. Significant reductions in MIDAS scores were found between Pretest and Posttest, p < .001. Results indicated MIDAS subscale A scores did not significantly change across the three time points. Significant reductions in MIDAS subscale B scores were found between Pretest and Midtreatment, p < .001, and between Pretest and Posttest, p < .001. In this study, pIR HEG appeared to be effective by the end of treatment in reducing the impact of headache-related disability among the participants.
View Full Paper →Neurofeedback and biofeedback with 37 migraineurs: a clinical outcome study
Traditional peripheral biofeedback has grade A evidence for effectively treating migraines. Two newer forms of neurobiofeedback, EEG biofeedback and hemoencephalography biofeedback were combined with thermal handwarming biofeedback to treat 37 migraineurs in a clinical outpatient setting.
View Full Paper →Slow Cortical Potentials Neurofeedback
Until recently, slow cortical potentials (SCP) training as a method of brainwave feedback has been widely ignored in the Anglo-American tradition of neurofeedback. One of the reasons was the lack of reliable and valid equipment outside a few research labs in Europe. In the meantime this has changed to the better. With devices now being available there is growing interest in SCP feedback. SCPs are very low shifts of brain activity. As they regulate excitation thresholds they may be used for self-regulation training in pathological conditions where excitation thresholds are impaired. This article explains technical requirements; describes training protocols; and gives a short overview on controlled research in epilepsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and migraine.
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