Choroidal Thickness Reduced for Individuals With Migraine

FRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Choroidal thickness is significantly reduced among individuals with migraine versus healthy controls, according to research published online Jan. 27 in the Survey of Ophthalmology.

Mahdi Gouravani, from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran, and colleagues conducted a meta-analysis to examine choroidal thickness measurements for individuals with migraine and healthy individuals. Data were included from 10 studies with 580 migraineurs (173 with aura, 128 without aura, and 279 without specification for the presence of aura) and 407 healthy controls.

The researchers found that compared with healthy controls, individuals with migraine had significantly reduced average choroidal thickness (standardized mean difference [SMD], −1.28). Significantly thinner subfoveal choroid was seen for migraine patients with and without aura compared with healthy controls (SMD, −1.16 and −0.81, respectively). Furthermore, individuals with migraine with aura had significantly lower subfoveal choroidal thickness than those without aura (SMD, −0.45).

"Observed shifts in choroidal vasculature and thickness, along with possible associated changes in retinal layers that are vitally supported by the choroid, may clarify the underlying mechanisms for migraine and its associated phenomena like aura, as well as potential associations between migraine headaches and eye diseases, especially glaucoma," the authors write.

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