ID 424 – Laser evoked potentials habituation and central sensitization symptoms in childhood migraine

Objectives Few studies dealt with central sensitization symptoms and pain processing in childhood migraine. Our aims were to examine pain sensitivity and evoked responses by CO2 laser stimuli (LEPs) including habituation in migraine children compared to controls, and to correlate LEPs features to signs of central sensitization Methods Thirty five 8–15 years aged migraine without aura patients were evaluated during the inter-critical phase and compared to 17 controls. LEPs were analyzed and main features correlated with clinical symptoms including allodynia and pericranial tenderness. Results Laser pain threshold was lower in migraine children and the N2P2 vertex complex amplitude was increased. Furthermore LEPs vertex waves habituation showed a clearly tendency toward progressive amplitude enhancement in migraine. Acute allodynia and inter-critical pericranial tenderness correlated with trigeminal LEPs features and in particular abnormal habituation pattern. Discussion Abnormalities of pain processing and symptoms of central sensitization seem to characterize migraine children. Conclusions Reduced habituation and progressive amplification of cortical responses under laser stimuli, indicate an overactive nociceptive system at the onset of migraine, which may subtend allodynia and pericranial tenderness. Key message Future trials may aid to early individuation of clinical phenotypes with tendency to chronic form development, worthy of a timely therapeutic approach.