Olfactory function in migraine both during and between attacks.

INTRODUCTION: People with migraine often report being osmophobic, both during and between acute migraine attacks. It is not clear, however, whether such reports are associated with changes in olfaction such as hyperosmia, as measured by psychophysical testing. In this case-control study we quantitatively assessed olfactory identification ability, which correlates with threshold tests of olfactory acuity, in patients with migraine at baseline (no headache), during migraine episodes, and after a treated attack and compared the test scores to those of matched control subjects. METHODS: Fifty episodic migraine subjects and 50 and sex- and age-matched controls without headache were tested. All completed the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT), a standardized and well-validated olfactory test. RESULTS: At baseline, the UPSIT scores did not differ significantly between the migraine and control study groups (median paired score difference: -1, p = 0.18). During migraine attacks, a minority of migraine subjects (eight of 42) developed microsmia (i.e. lower test scores by at least four points), suggesting that, as compared to their matched controls, olfactory acuity was somewhat impaired during migraine attacks (p = 0.02). This difference was less pronounced and not statistically significant after a successfully treated attack (p = 0.15). DISCUSSION: People with episodic migraine were found to have similar olfactory function as age- and sex-matched controls, but a minority exhibit microsmia or hyposmia during acute attacks. The cause of this dysfunction is unknown, but could relate to autonomic symptoms, limbic system activation, or disorders of higher order sensory processing

Migraine Care Challenges and Strategies in US Uninsured and Underinsured Adults: A Narrative Review, Part 1

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142940/1/head13286_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142940/2/head13286.pd

Migraine Care Challenges and Strategies in US Uninsured and Underinsured Adults: A Narrative Review, Part 2

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/144288/1/head13321_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/144288/2/head13321.pd

Remote electrical neuromodulation (REN) wearable device for adolescents with migraine: a real-world study of high-frequency abortive treatment suggests preventive effects

IntroductionMigraine is a chronic neurological disease manifesting as attacks of disabling head pain and associated symptoms. Remote electrical neuromodulation (REN) is a non-pharmacological, prescribed, wearable device (Nerivio®). This device has been certified by the FDA for the acute and/or preventive treatment of migraine with or without aura in patients 12 years of age or older. The device is affixed to the user’s arm during 45-min treatment sessions and is operated using a smartphone app. This study (NCT05769322) aims to evaluate whether frequent use of REN for the acute treatment of migraine in adolescents resulted in a reduction in monthly migraine treatment days (MMTD), as previously demonstrated in adults through a dedicated prevention clinical trial (NCT04828707).MethodsThe study included real-world prospective data from adolescent patients who used REN on at least 10 days every 28-day month, following the REN migraine prevention guideline of an every-other-day pattern. Additional requirements were at least three REN treatment days in each of the two subsequent months. The number of MMTD was used as a proxy measure for the number of monthly migraine days (MMD). The change in MMTD from the first month, taken as a “baseline,” to each of the following months was used to evaluate the presence and size of potential migraine preventive benefits of REN in adolescents.ResultsA total of 83 adolescents were eligible for analysis. The users were 15.9 ± 1.3 years of age (mean ± SD), and 89% of them were female. The results demonstrated a substantial month-to-month reduction in the mean (±SD) number of REN treatment days from 12.6 (±3.2) MMTD in the first month to 9.0 (±4.8) MMTD in the second month (p < 0.001), and a further decrease to 7.4 (±4.2) MMTD in the third month (p < 0.001). This indicates an accumulative reduction of 5.2 (±4.8) mean REN MMTD from the first month to the third month of consecutive REN treatment. The users also reported consistent 2-h acute pain responses in at least 50% of their treated attacks, with 61.9% of the users reported experiencing pain relief, 24.5% reported pain freedom, 67.4% indicated relief in functional disability, and 41.3% reported complete freedom from functional disability.ConclusionThe frequent use of REN among adolescents as an acute treatment for migraine attacks resulted in a decrease in the mean number of monthly treatment days in the subsequent months, suggesting that REN may have potential preventive benefits for migraine in this subpopulation

Tension Type Headache in Adolescence and Childhood: Where Are We Now?

Tension type headache (TTH) is a primary headache disorder considered common in children and adolescents. It remains debatable whether TTH and migraine are separate biological entities. This review summarizes the most recent literature of TTH with regards to children and adolescents. Further studies of TTH are needed to develop a biologically based classification system that may be facilitated through understanding changes in the developing brain during childhood and adolescence

Acute Migraine Therapy: New Drugs and New Approaches

The conceptual shift of our understanding of migraine from a vascular disorder to a brain disorder has dramatically altered the approach to the development of new medicines in the field. Current pharmacologic treatments of acute migraine consist of nonspecific and relatively specific agents. Migraine-specific drugs comprise two classes, the ergot alkaloid derivatives and the triptans, serotonin 5-HT1B/1D receptor agonists. The ergots, consisting of ergotamine and dihydroergotamine (DHE), are the oldest specific antimigraine drugs available and are considered relatively safe and effective. Ergotamine has been used less extensively because of its adverse effects; DHE is better tolerated. The triptan era, beginning in the 1990s, was a period of considerable change, although these medicines retained vasoconstrictor actions. New methods of delivering older drugs include orally inhaled DHE and the transdermal formulation of sumatriptan, both currently under study. Novel medicines being developed are targeted at neural sites of action. Serotonin 5-HT1F receptor agonists have proven effective in phase II studies and have no vascular actions. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptor antagonists are another promising nonvasoconstrictor approach to treating acute migraine. Olcegepant (BIBN4096BS) and telcagepant (MK-0974) have been shown to be safe and effective in phase I, II, and (for telcagepant) phase III clinical trials. Other targets under investigation include glutamate (AMPA/kainate), TRPV1, prostanoid EP4, and nitric oxide synthase. With new neural targets and the potential for therapeutic advances, the next era of antimigraine medications is near

Characterizing Long COVID: Deep Phenotype of a Complex Condition.

BACKGROUND: Numerous publications describe the clinical manifestations of post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC or long COVID ), but they are difficult to integrate because of heterogeneous methods and the lack of a standard for denoting the many phenotypic manifestations. Patient-led studies are of particular importance for understanding the natural history of COVID-19, but integration is hampered because they often use different terms to describe the same symptom or condition. This significant disparity in patient versus clinical characterization motivated the proposed ontological approach to specifying manifestations, which will improve capture and integration of future long COVID studies. METHODS: The Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) is a widely used standard for exchange and analysis of phenotypic abnormalities in human disease but has not yet been applied to the analysis of COVID-19. FINDINGS: We identified 303 articles published before April 29, 2021, curated 59 relevant manuscripts that described clinical manifestations in 81 cohorts three weeks or more following acute COVID-19, and mapped 287 unique clinical findings to HPO terms. We present layperson synonyms and definitions that can be used to link patient self-report questionnaires to standard medical terminology. Long COVID clinical manifestations are not assessed consistently across studies, and most manifestations have been reported with a wide range of synonyms by different authors. Across at least 10 cohorts, authors reported 31 unique clinical features corresponding to HPO terms; the most commonly reported feature was Fatigue (median 45.1%) and the least commonly reported was Nausea (median 3.9%), but the reported percentages varied widely between studies. INTERPRETATION: Translating long COVID manifestations into computable HPO terms will improve analysis, data capture, and classification of long COVID patients. If researchers, clinicians, and patients share a common language, then studies can be compared/pooled more effectively. Furthermore, mapping lay terminology to HPO will help patients assist clinicians and researchers in creating phenotypic characterizations that are computationally accessible, thereby improving the stratification, diagnosis, and treatment of long COVID. FUNDING: U24TR002306; UL1TR001439; P30AG024832; GBMF4552; R01HG010067; UL1TR002535; K23HL128909; UL1TR002389; K99GM145411

Advocacy for Migraine Relief: Strategic Planning to Eliminate the Burden

PURPOSE OF REVIEWThe goal of this article is to describe migraine advocacy as an essential means to advance the field of headache medicine. Special attention is spent outlining advocacy initiatives and priorities. RECENT FINDINGSThere is little written about "migraine advocacy" in the literature. However, organizational and expert priorities include advocating for policies that improve systems of care, telemedicine, education, research, and public initiatives that reduce health disparities and the stigma of migraine. This summary includes the latest advocacy efforts to support policies that may improve migraine care, strengthen the field of headache medicine, and eliminate the burden of migraine