Role of the Hypothalamus in Migraine and Cluster Headaches

Jamieson, Dara G. MD

Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology, Weill Cornell Medical College

Financial Disclosure: Dr. Sarva (author) reports that she receives grant/research support from Biogen, Blue Rock Therapeutics, Insightec, Neuroderm, Novo Nordisk, Prevail Therapeutics, Roche, Insightec, and the National Institutes of Health. All of the relevant financial relationships listed for this individual have been mitigated. None of the remaining authors or planners for this educational activity have relevant financial relationships to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.

Neurology Alert 42(9):p 65-67, May 2023.

SYNOPSIS: The hypothalamus plays a regulatory role in both migraine and cluster headaches. However, the two headache types have distinctive clinical features, characteristic areas of resting state functional connectivity on magnetic resonance imaging, and different genetic chronobiological associations.

SOURCES: Messina R, Sudre CH, Wei DY, et al. Biomarkers of migraine and cluster headache: Differences and similarities. Ann Neurol 2023;93:729-742.

Benkli B, Kim SY, Koike N, et al. Circadian features of cluster headache and migraine: A systematic review, meta-analysis, and genetic analysis. Neurology 2023; Mar 29. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000207240. [Online ahead of print].