Serum lactic acid and pyruvic acid levels in patients with migraine and tension type headache

Serum lactic acid and pyruvic acid levels in patients with migraine and tension type headache Objective: MELAS (mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes) syndrome is frequently associated with migraine like headaches. The relationship between migraine and mitochondrial diseases is interesting. Also mitochondrial disorders in tension like headache still remain to be investigated. The aim of this report is to evaluate the serum lactic acid and pyruvic acid levels in patients with migraine and tension type headache and compare them with healthy control group. Methods: We evaluated 30 patients with migraine, 30 patients with tension like headache and 30 healthy control. Lactic and pyruvic acid levels in serum samples were measured by biochemical methods. Kruskal Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were used for statistical analysis using SPSS 11.5 for Windows program. Results: Serum lactic and pyruvic acid levels in patients with migraine and tension type headache were significantly higher than control group. Conclusion: Multi-disciplinary researches are needed to determine mitochondrial diseases in patients with