Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Analysis in Children With Migraine With and Without Aura Using Optical Coherence Tomography: A Case-Control Study.

Purpose: To evaluate retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in children with migraine, with and without aura, compared to healthy controls using optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Methods: In this cross-sectional case-control study, patients with a diagnosis of migraine with aura (MwA) or without aura (MwoA) were considered and healthy children were included as controls. Age, sex, duration of migraine, number of episodes per month, duration of episodes, and use of prophylactic treatment with magnesium were recorded. All patients underwent complete ophthalmologic, neurologic, and pediatric examination. Optic nerve OCT images were obtained using Heidelberg Spectralis OCT (Heidelberg Engineering) and mean global RNFL thickness and the average thickness for each sector were noted.

Results: Thirty-seven children were included: 17 with migraine (9 MwoA and 8 MwA) and 20 controls, the mean age being 13.8 ± 2.9 (range: 8 to 16) and 13.4 ± 2.5 (range: 7 to 16) years, respectively. No significant differences in RNFL thickness were found when comparing all patients who had migraine with healthy controls. However, children with MwA showed statistically significant reductions in RNFL thickness in the temporal (mean difference: 7.83; 95% CI: 0.52 to 15.14, = .027) and inferior-temporal (mean difference: 16.06; 95% CI: 1.95 to 30.16, = .027) sectors compared to patients with MwoA. None of the other sectors showed statistically significant differences between groups (all > .05). In the migraine group, negative correlations were detected between the number of episodes per month and RNFL thickness in the nasal-superior quadrant ( = -.420; = .021).

Conclusions: Children with MwA may present a decrease in RNFL thickness, which is associated with the number of episodes per month. .