OBJECTIVES: Allodynia is frequently associated with migraine and other primary headaches. Our aim was to investigate the presence of allodynia and related features in idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), which is a disabling secondary headache disorder. METHODS: We included 46 IIH patients and analyzed their clinical and laboratory findings retrospectively. Allodynia was assessed using the validated 12-item allodynia symptom checklist (ASC-12), in addition to examining pressure (with von Frey filaments) and brush allodynia. RESULTS: Allodynia was detected in 23 (50%) of IIH patients with ASC-12 and/or instrumental testing. The most commonly reported location was unilateral V1 distribution. The allodynic symptom profile was similar but milder when compared to 143 migraineurs with ASC-12. Only the aggravation of headache with physical activity emerged as a significant variable associated with allodynia in IIH. Among allodynic patients, only eight had previous migraine diagnosis. After onset of IIH, 20 patients reported migraine-like headache, while only three reported non-migrainous headache. In contrast, 13 of 23 non-allodynic IIH patients had non-migrainous headache features (p = 0.0045). CONCLUSION: Half of the IIH patients reported allodynia, and these allodynic patients had mostly migraine-like headache profiles. Our study suggested that IIH may trigger some common mechanisms with migraine in pain pathways causing allodynia.
OBJECTIVES:Allodynia is frequently associated with migraine and other primary headaches. Our aim was to investigate the presence of allodynia and related features in idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), which is a disabling secondary headache disorder. METHODS: We included 46 IIH patients and analyzed their clinical and laboratory findings retrospectively. Allodynia was assessed using the validated 12-item allodynia symptom checklist (ASC-12), in addition to examining pressure (with von Frey filaments) and brush allodynia. RESULTS:Allodynia was detected in 23 (50%) of IIH patients with ASC-12 and/or instrumental testing. The most commonly reported location was unilateral V1 distribution. The allodynic symptom profile was similar but milder when compared to 143 migraineurs with ASC-12. Only the aggravation of headache with physical activity emerged as a significant variable associated with allodynia in IIH. Among allodynic patients, only eight had previous migraine diagnosis. After onset of IIH, 20 patients reported migraine-like headache, while only three reported non-migrainous headache. In contrast, 13 of 23 non-allodynic IIH patients had non-migrainous headache features (p = 0.0045). CONCLUSION: Half of the IIH patients reported allodynia, and these allodynic patients had mostly migraine-like headache profiles. Our study suggested that IIH may trigger some common mechanisms with migraine in pain pathways causing allodynia.
Authors: Deborah I Friedman; Peter A Quiros; Prem S Subramanian; Luis J Mejico; Shan Gao; Michael McDermott; Michael Wall Journal: Headache Date: 2017-07-28 Impact factor: 5.887