Migraine and depression are closely interconnected, and this bond is much more complicated than simply "chronic pain impairs mood". New studies show that if a person suffers from migraines, then his risk of depression increases 2.5 times! But the most interesting thing is that this connection is bilateral: depression also increases the likelihood of migraine, and also contributes to the fact that headaches become chronic and more difficult to treat.
What is behind it?
Scientists at the Institute of Neurobiology in San Huana de Alakantte have found that serotonin, better known as the Hormone of Happiness, is a common link between migraine and depression. Its level affects both headaches and mood. In migraine, the brain can produce too much serotonin, which causes attacks. And in depression, on the contrary, there is a lack of this hormone, which leads to a depressed state.
Interestingly, migraine drugs, such as Tryptans, reduce serotonin levels in the brain, which helps relieve pain. At the same time, antidepressants, on the contrary, increase serotonin, struggling with the depressive condition. This confirms the theory that migraines and depression have common neurochemical mechanisms.
How does it affect the brain?
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has shown that people who have both migraines and depression are faced with a decrease in brain volume than those who have only one of these conditions. Particularly affected by those areas of the brain responsible for the treatment of pain, emotions and stress.
For example, such people have reduced activity in the thalamus (brain zone, which transmits pain signals), as well as in the medial prefrontal cortex - an important structure that regulates emotions. This can explain why people are more likely to experience physical pain in depression, and migraine is accompanied by increased emotional sensitivity.
What about hormones?
Another factor is female hormones. Estrogen and progesterone are known to affect both of these conditions, which is why women suffer from migraines and depression more often than men.
Sudden fluctuations in estrogen levels can provoke migraine attacks, as well as promote depressive disorders. As estrogens are involved in the regulation of serotonin, their low levels can contribute to the development of both conditions. Moreover, they affect neuroplasticity, that is, the ability of the brain to adapt and change.
Progesterone, in turn, can modulate the transmission of pain signals, which may explain why in some women migraines are exacerbated during certain phases of the menstrual cycle.
Is there hope for new treatment?
One of the new promising areas in the treatment of migraines and depression is the CGRP (calcitonine-gene-connected peptide). Its level increases in people with migraines, and the introduction of this substance can cause symptoms similar to migraine attack. Interestingly, women with depression are also higher, which suggests that CGRP can be a biomarker for both conditions.
Recent studies have shown that drugs that block CGRP can reduce not only headache but also depressive symptoms. This opens the possibility of creating new universal medicines, which will simultaneously fight both migraines and depression.
Visnovok
Although scientists have not yet revealed all the parts of migraine and depression, it is already clear that these states have common biological mechanisms - from serotonin levels to the work of certain areas of the brain and hormonal background.
This knowledge will help in the future to develop more effective treatments that will take into account not only the symptoms, but also the deep neurobiological causes of these diseases. This gives hope that one day people suffering from migraines or depression will be able to get a new generation of medicines that will help them get rid of both problems at the same time.
According to the article Understanding the Biological Relationship between Migraine and Depression.
In the medical center of Expio with ketamine therapy and blockade of the stellar nerve node can effectively affect both depression and migraine.