A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population

Paul G Mathew,1–4 Fred Michael Cutrer,5 Ivan Garza5 1Department of Neurology, John R Graham Headache Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, 2Department of Neurology, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, Braintree, MA, 3Division of Neurology, Cambridge Health Alliance,...

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Main Authors: Mathew PG, Cutrer FM, Garza I
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Dove Medical Press 2016-02-01
Series:Journal of Pain Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.dovepress.com/a-touchy-subject-an-assessment-of-cutaneous-allodynia-in-a-chronic-mig-peer-reviewed-article-JPR
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author Mathew PG
Cutrer FM
Garza I
author_facet Mathew PG
Cutrer FM
Garza I
author_sort Mathew PG
collection DOAJ
description Paul G Mathew,1–4 Fred Michael Cutrer,5 Ivan Garza5 1Department of Neurology, John R Graham Headache Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, 2Department of Neurology, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, Braintree, MA, 3Division of Neurology, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, 4Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 5Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA Background: Cutaneous allodynia (CA) is a common feature of migraine, which has a complex underlying pathophysiology that is not well understood. In addition to pain, photophobia, phonophobia, osmophobia, nausea, and vomiting, CA can contribute to the overall disability caused by migraine. The presence of CA can be established via a validated questionnaire. Validated questionnaires and other tests are rarely performed in clinical practice. As such, current prevalence estimates for CA may be an underestimation. Methods: Utilizing a validated questionnaire, we assessed the presence of CA in consecutive patients (n=44) presenting with chronic migraine at a tertiary headache center. Results: CA appears to be quite prevalent, at ~90%, among female patients with chronic migraine. Conclusion: CA prevalence in chronic migraine may be underestimated in the literature, and larger studies may better demonstrate a more accurate estimate of its prevalence. Keywords: headache, validated questionnaire, migraine chronification, central sensitization
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spelling doaj.art-b71bbc3f00124a8c93f7374f16e94e392022-12-21T17:48:00ZengDove Medical PressJournal of Pain Research1178-70902016-02-012016Issue 110110425709A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine populationMathew PGCutrer FMGarza IPaul G Mathew,1–4 Fred Michael Cutrer,5 Ivan Garza5 1Department of Neurology, John R Graham Headache Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, 2Department of Neurology, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, Braintree, MA, 3Division of Neurology, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, 4Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 5Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA Background: Cutaneous allodynia (CA) is a common feature of migraine, which has a complex underlying pathophysiology that is not well understood. In addition to pain, photophobia, phonophobia, osmophobia, nausea, and vomiting, CA can contribute to the overall disability caused by migraine. The presence of CA can be established via a validated questionnaire. Validated questionnaires and other tests are rarely performed in clinical practice. As such, current prevalence estimates for CA may be an underestimation. Methods: Utilizing a validated questionnaire, we assessed the presence of CA in consecutive patients (n=44) presenting with chronic migraine at a tertiary headache center. Results: CA appears to be quite prevalent, at ~90%, among female patients with chronic migraine. Conclusion: CA prevalence in chronic migraine may be underestimated in the literature, and larger studies may better demonstrate a more accurate estimate of its prevalence. Keywords: headache, validated questionnaire, migraine chronification, central sensitizationhttps://www.dovepress.com/a-touchy-subject-an-assessment-of-cutaneous-allodynia-in-a-chronic-mig-peer-reviewed-article-JPRheadachechronic migrainecutaneous allodyniaquestionnaire
spellingShingle Mathew PG
Cutrer FM
Garza I
A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
Journal of Pain Research
headache
chronic migraine
cutaneous allodynia
questionnaire
title A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
title_full A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
title_fullStr A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
title_full_unstemmed A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
title_short A touchy subject: an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
title_sort touchy subject an assessment of cutaneous allodynia in a chronic migraine population
topic headache
chronic migraine
cutaneous allodynia
questionnaire
url https://www.dovepress.com/a-touchy-subject-an-assessment-of-cutaneous-allodynia-in-a-chronic-mig-peer-reviewed-article-JPR
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