Analysis of the EEG spectrum in attacks of common migraine
Puca, F.M.; Brancasi, B.; Genco, S.; Monetti, C.; Scarcia, R.; Strafella, G.; D'Ursi, R.; Savarese, M.
Bollettino della Societa Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale 62(10): 1277-1284
1986
ISSN/ISBN: 0037-8771 PMID: 3828125 Document Number: 283598
In a previous study on strictly unilateral classic and common migraineurs, EEG power spectral analysis demonstrated in classic migraine sufferes the occurrence of an energy peak in theta frequencies on the pain side hemisphere, not present in common migraine sufferers. In this study EEG spectral analysis on 18 common migraineurs with not strictly unilateral pain or with pain-side alternation was performed during basal condition, the pre-painful and the headache phase of spontaneous or drug-induced migraine attack. Spectral analysis resulted without abnormalities in sixteen patients: one patient showed slow abnormalities in basal condition, which increased during the attack; another patient presented, only during the attack, the occurrence of analogous abnormalities on the same side of prevalent pain. These results are in a good agreement with our previous study on strictly unilateral migraineurs and could be explained on the basis of "spreading depression" hypothesis, according to which only classic migraineurs show EEG abnormalities on the pain side hemisphere, not present in common migraineurs.