Migraine Disorders: Afra J

Anonymous00234, Evers S, Afra J, Frese A, Goadsby PJ, Linde M, May A, Sándor PS. · Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Germany. European Federation of NeurologicalSocieties · Eur J Neurol. · Pubmed #16796580 No free full text.

Abstract: Migraine is one of the most frequent disabling neurological conditions with a major impact on the patients' quality of life. To give evidence-based or expert recommendations for the different drug treatment procedures of the different migraine syndromes based on a literature search and an consensus in an expert panel. All available medical reference systems were screened for all kinds of clinical studies on migraine with and without aura and on migraine-like syndromes. The findings in these studies were evaluated according to the recommendations of the EFNS resulting in level A,B, or C recommendations and good practice points. For the acute treatment of migraine attacks, oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and triptans are recommended. The administration should follow the concept of stratified treatment. Before intake of NSAIDs and triptans, oral metoclopramide or domperidon is recommended. In very severe attacks, intravenous acetylsalicylic acid or subcutaneous sumatriptan are drugs of first choice. A status migrainosus can probably be treated by steroids. For the prophylaxis of migraine, betablockers (propranolol and metoprolol), flunarizine, valproic acid, and topiramate are drugs of first choice. Drugs of second choice for migraine prophylaxis are amitriptyline, naproxen, petasites, and bisoprolol.

Sándor PS, Afra J. · Headache and Pain Unit, Neurology Department, Frauenklinikstr 26, 8091 Zürich, Switzerland. · Curr Pain Headache Rep. · Pubmed #15907259 No free full text.

Abstract: Nonpharmacologic treatment of migraine is often used by patients and can provide interesting options for physicians. Knowledge about the evidence and its absence is important. Avoidance of trigger factors can help, if individualized. Behavioral approaches, such as relaxation techniques, biofeedback, and cognitive-behavioral therapy, require far more specialist time or technical devices, but are supported by some evidence, which is mostly old. The same is true for hypnosis. A new approach in migraine prevention is aerobic exercise, which is associated with positive side effects. Whether it will take a strong role, similar to the treatment of depression, remains to be seen. There is no convincing evidence for the efficacy of spinal manipulation. Hyperbaric oxygen may be an effective, but rarely practical prophylactic measure. The evidence pertaining to the efficacy of acupuncture is controversial because of methodologic difficulties, but an ongoing large German study may provide valuable evidence in the near future. Nutritional supplements acting on mitochondrial metabolism, such as magnesium, riboflavin, and coenzyme Q10, were shown to be effective in small, randomized, controlled trials. More studies on the different therapeutic interventions are needed, using modern diagnostic standards and state-of-the-art trial methodology.

Sándor PS, Afra J, Proietti Cecchini AP, Albert A, Schoenen J. · Department of Neurology, CHR Citadelle, University of Liège, Belgium. · Funct Neurol. · Pubmed #11200803 No free full text.

Abstract: Migraine patients show impaired cortical information processing between attacks with deficient habituation of pattern-reversal visual evoked potentials (VEP), and strong intensity dependence of auditory cortical evoked potentials (IDAP). This could be a genetic trait as certain genetic patterns are known for evoked potentials in healthy subjects. VEP-habituation and IDAP were studied in 40 migraine patients, i.e. pairs of 20 parents and their children. We developed a novel approach based on Monte Carlo statistics to selectively assess vertical familial influences. Both groups, parents and children, were characterized by abnormal VEP-habituation and IDAP. However, similarity between related pairs was far more pronounced than similarity between unrelated pairs. Assessed with a novel statistical approach, familial influences proved to be highly significant in determining cortical information processing in migraineurs, thus supporting the important role of genetic factors.

Afra J. · National Institute of Neurosurgery, Budapest, Hungary. · Funct Neurol. · Pubmed #16483461 No free full text.

Abstract: The presence of premonitory symptoms in about 20% of patients suggest that the migraine attack is initiated long before the occurrence of the aura or headache symptoms. Recording of evoked and event-related potentials has revealed a strong intensity dependence of auditory evoked potentials (IDAP) in migraine with and without aura. We studied changes in IDAP in the peri-ictal period in 63 migraine patients (55 presenting migraine without aura, four migraine with aura, and four both types) and compared findings with interictal controls. The results of this study indicated that cortical processing of sensory information tends to normalize just before and during an attack. The normalization of IDAP may reflect an increase in central serotonergic activity. The study has been published in Cephalalgia (Afra J, Sándor PS, Schoenen J. Cephalalgia 2000;20:714-719).

Ambrosini A, De Pasqua V, Afra J, Sandor PS, Schoenen J. · Headache Clinics - IRCCS Neuromed via Atinense, 18, I-86077 , Pozzilli (Isernia), Italy. · Neurosci Lett. · Pubmed #11403975 No free full text.

Abstract: Habituation of cortical evoked responses to repetitive stimuli is reduced in migraine between attacks. To explore another aspect of information processing, we measured auditory sensory gating. The amplitude of the P50 response to the second of two homologous stimuli was significantly less reduced in migraineurs than in healthy volunteers. This lack of auditory sensory gating may be due to a hypofunction of monoaminergic subcortico-cortical pathways, which is also supposed to cause the interictal deficit of cortical habituation to repetitive stimuli.

Afra J, Proietti Cecchini A, Sándor PS, Schoenen J. · Department of Neurology Semmelweis University of Medicine, Budapest, Hungary. · Clin Neurophysiol. · Pubmed #10825720 No free full text.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: As both habituation of pattern reversal visual evoked potentials (PR-VEP) (Schoenen J, Wang W, Albert A, Delwaide PJ. Potentiation instead of habituation characterizes visual evoked potentials in migraine patients between attacks. Eur J Neurol 1995;2:115-122) and intensity dependence of auditory evoked cortical potentials (IDAP) (Wang W, Timsit-Berthier M, Schoenen J. Intensity dependence of auditory evoked potentials in migraine: an indication of cortical potentiation and low serotonergic neurotransmission? Neurology 1996;46:1404-1409) were found abnormal in migraine between attacks, we have searched for intraindividual correlations between both tests in 59 migraine patients (22 with aura [MA], 37 without aura [MO]) and in 23 healthy volunteers (HV). METHODS: Amplitude change of the PR-VEP N1-P1 was measured between the 1st and 5th block of 50 sequential averagings during continuous stimulation at 3.1 Hz. IDAP was computed from N1-P2 amplitudes of 100 averagings during stimulations at 40, 50, 60 and 70 dB SL. Amplitude-stimulus intensity function (ASF) slopes and amplitude changes between 40 and 70 dB were calculated. MO and MA differed from HV in PR-VEP amplitude change (P=0.007) and IDAP slope (P = 0.0004). RESULTS: There was no significant correlation between VEP amplitude changes and IDAP slopes, nor between the latter two and attack frequency or disease duration. A negative correlation was found between the amplitude of the first block of averaged responses and potentiation of VEP in all subject groups (P = 0.03) as well as between the amplitude of the auditory evoked potential, at 40 dB, and the percentage of amplitude increase between 40 and 70 dB in MO (P = 0.004) and MA (P = 0.007). ASF slopes and 40 dB amplitudes were significantly correlated only in the MA group (P = 0.002). These results confirm the interictal deficit of habituation in cortical processing of repetitive visual and auditory information in migraine. Since there is no intraindividual correlation between the cortical responses to these sensory modalities they are complementary tools for the study of migraine and may help to identify subgroups of patients with distinct pathophysiological mechanisms. CONCLUSIONS: The strong negative correlation between the initial amplitude of evoked potentials and their amplitude increase during subsequent averaging confirms that the response potentiation in migraine is likely to be due to a reduced preactivation level of sensory cortices.

Afra J, Ambrosini A, Genicot R, Albert A, Schoenen J. · Department of Neurology, Semmelweis University of Medicine, Budapest, Hungary. · Headache. · Pubmed #10759901 No free full text.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether colored glasses influence the habituation of visual evoked potentials. BACKGROUND: We have previously shown that during pattern-reversal stimulations lasting 2 minutes the amplitude of the visual evoked potential increases in migraine with and without aura between attacks, whereas it decreases in healthy volunteers. Red light was found to increase visually evoked EEG fast activity only in children with migraine with aura. Wearing rose-tinted glasses for 4 months decreased attack frequency in parallel with a reduction of the visually evoked EEG fast activity. METHODS: We compared the change in amplitude of the visual evoked potential using five different tinted glasses in 12 patients with migraine with aura and in 10 healthy volunteers. During continuous stimulation at 3.1 Hz, five blocks of 50 responses were sequentially averaged using red, yellow, green, blue, and grey glasses and without glasses in a random order and analyzed in terms of latencies and N1-P1 amplitudes. Amplitude changes were calculated for each block by comparison with the first block in every condition and analyzed statistically using Zerbe's method. RESULTS: In healthy volunteers, the visual evoked potential amplitude increased with red glasses compared to without glasses (P = .05) or with green glasses (P = .03). In patients with migraine with aura, no significant difference was detected using colored glasses. Our findings in healthy volunteers are in line with earlier reports of increased excitability of the human visual cortex when exposed to red light. The lack of such a pattern in patients with migraine with aura suggests that the visual cortex is interictally hypoexcitable rather than hyperexcitable, which is consistent with studies of transcranial magnetic stimulation.

Sándor PS, Afra J, Ambrosini A, Schoenen J. · Neurology Department, CHR Citadelle, University of Liège, Belgium. · Headache. · Pubmed #10759900 No free full text.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of different pharmacological treatments on the intensity dependence of auditory evoked cortical potentials in migraineurs. BACKGROUND: Between attacks, patients with migraine show abnormalities in cortical information processing and decreased brain mitochondrial energy reserve. Both are most probably relevant for migraine pathogenesis, and they could be differentially modified by prophylactic drug therapy. Design.-The intensity dependence of the auditory evoked cortical potentials is, on average, increased in migraine. We have studied this intensity dependence in 26 patients before and after a 4-month period of prophylaxis with beta-blockers (n = 11, all migraine without aura; metoprolol or bisoprolol) or riboflavin (n = 15, migraine without aura: 13, migraine with aura: 2). Recordings were performed at least 3 days before or after an attack. RESULTS: After the treatment with beta-blockers, the intensity dependence of the auditory evoked cortical potentials was significantly decreased (before: 1.66+/-1.02 microV/10 dB; after: 0.79+/-1.06 microV/10 dB, P=.02). The decrease in intensity dependence was correlated significantly with clinical improvement (r = .69, P = .02). There was no change in intensity dependence after riboflavin treatment (before: 1.80+/-0.81 microV/10 dB; after: 1.56+/-0.83 microV/10 dB, P = .39), although the majority of patients showed improvement. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm that beta-blockers and riboflavin act on two distinct pathophysiological mechanisms. Combining both treatments might enhance their efficacy without increasing central nervous system side effects.

Sándor PS, Afra J, Proietti-Cecchini A, Albert A, Schoenen J. · Neurology Department, University of Zurich, Switzerland. · Neuroreport. · Pubmed #10363931 No free full text.

Abstract: Cortical information processing in migraine patients is impaired between attacks, showing deficient habituation of pattern-reversal visual evoked potentials (VEP), and strong intensity dependence of auditory cortical evoked potentials (IDAP). This could be a genetic trait as certain genetic patterns are known for evoked potentials in healthy subjects. We investigated VEP habituation and IDAP in 20 pairs of migraineurs made up of parents and their children. Using a Monte-Carlo statistical method, we selectively assessed vertical familial influences. VEP habituation and IDAP were abnormal in both parents and children. However, similarity was far more pronounced between related pairs than between unrelated pairs. Familial influences are highly significant in determinants of cortical information processing in migraineurs, hence supporting the important role of genetic factors.