Biomarker To Diagnose Migraine With Simple Blood Test Found

Researchers have located a potential migraine biomarker in the blood, which can create a blood test to identify if patients undergo these headaches or not, according to LiveScience.

By testing blood samples of 88 women, scientists undertook a neurologic exam and documented their body mass index. They found that 36 women suffered no migraines while 52 were exposed to "episodic" migraines at least 15 times every month. The patients got an average of 5.6 migraine attacks every month.

"Blood tests revealed that the ceramide levels of the women with episodic migraines were low, averaging 6,000 nanograms per milliliter, while those who did not have migraines had higher ceramide levels, averaging 10,500 nanograms per milliliter. A standard deviation increase in blood ceramide levels resulted in 92 percent lower risk of developing migraine," according to hngn.

"On the other hand, increased levels of two types of sphingomyelin lipid translated to 2.5 times increased risk of developing migraines."

Migraine can be assessed with the help of a biological marker for migraine, said Dr. Karl Ekbom from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. "This study is an important contribution to our understanding of the pathophysiology of migraine and may have vast practical clinical and therapeutic implications if it is supported by further studies."

However, the study explored just episodic migraines, not chronic migraines that affect a patient more than 15 times in a month. Dr. Karl Ekbom said that the study can be compared with various types of headaches, such as cluster headaches, according to hngn.

"While more research is needed to confirm these initial findings, the possibility of discovering a new biomarker for migraine is exciting," study author B. Lee Peterlin at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said in a press release.

The study was published in the Sept. 9 online issue of the journal Neurology.