NEW RESEARCH has demonstrated that in both men and women, as cardiovascular disease risk increases, the risk of migraine decreases. This suggests a possible association between lower cardiovascular risk and the presence of active migraine.
This study aimed to assess the link between cardiovascular health, as indicated by SCORE2—a cardiovascular risk assessment tool that factors in age, cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, and blood pressure—and self-reported migraine status among adults. The cohort included participants from the Lifelines study, a population-based group of community-dwelling adults in the northern Netherlands. Individuals with serious health constraints that might preclude participation were excluded, while those with complete data on cardiovascular risk and migraine status were included. Baseline data collection spanned from 2006 to 2014, with follow-up until early 2021. Migraine status was self-reported and categorised as prevalent, incident, or absent, with follow-up questionnaires administered at intervals of 1.5 to 2.5 years.
Analysis revealed an inverse relationship between SCORE2 categories and both prevalent and incident migraine, especially pronounced among women. Prevalent migraine odds ratios (ORs) decreased from 0.93 (95% CI, 0.90-0.96) in the 1.0% to <2.5% SCORE2 category to 0.43 (95% CI, 0.39-0.48) in those with a SCORE2 of 10.0% or higher. For incident migraine, ORs dropped from 0.63 (95% CI, 0.57-0.69) in the 1.0% to <2.5% group to 0.17 (95% CI, 0.10-0.27) in the ≥10.0% category. The pattern was consistent across age groups, showing no significant impact of age on the association.
In clinical practice, these findings suggest that while migraine is generally linked with increased cardiovascular risk, individuals with active or developing migraine may actually present with lower cardiovascular risk. This association, particularly significant in women, indicates that underlying sex-specific factors could influence migraine’s relationship with cardiovascular health. Further research into these sex differences and their implications on long-term vascular and migraine management in clinical settings would be valuable for developing tailored prevention and treatment strategies.
Reference
Al-Hassany L et al. Cardiovascular risk scores and migraine status. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(10):e2440577.
