Headache prevalence and types in multiple sclerosis and related neuroimmunological diseases: A multicenter study

AimSeveral studies have reported a higher prevalence of migraine in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in healthy controls (HCs). The aim of this study was to elucidate the headache prevalence in patients with MS or other neuroimmunological disorders, as well as to investigate the associations between headache characteristics and disease activity.MethodsIn this multicenter study in Japan, a headache questionnaire was distributed to patients with MS (n = 338), aquaporin-4 IgG-positive neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD; n = 106), myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD; n = 51) or acetylcholine receptor antibody-positive myasthenia gravis (MG; n = 104), and healthy controls (HCs; n = 407). We included only participants aged 18-65 years in this study. The questionnaire responses were classified according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd edition. The questionnaire was designed to systematically capture headache characteristics based on established diagnostic criteria.ResultsIn total, any type of headache was found for 54.1% in MS, 63.2% in NMOSD, 43.1% in MOGAD, 43.3% in MG and 43.5% in HCs. After Holm-Bonferroni correction for comparisons among the five groups, the MS (<i>p</i> = 0.015) and NMOSD (<i>p</i> < 0.001) groups had significantly higher odds of any headache compared to the HC group. No difference was observed for migraine (MS 16.0%, NMOSD 16.0%, MOGAD 9.8%, MG 12.5%, HCs 17.0%). In contrast, patients with MS (24.0%) and NMOSD (37.7%) showed a significantly higher frequency of tension-type headache (TTH) than HCs (16.7%) even after adjusting for age and sex. Neither disease activity nor disease-modifying therapy displayed any association with headache severity in patients with MS, NMOSD, or MOGAD.ConclusionsOur study showed no increased prevalence of migraine in MS and other neuroimmunological disorders, whereas TTH comorbidity was higher in MS and NMOSD than in controls.