Chronic Migraine Linked to Sleep Apnea Risk

Individuals who experience migraines, especially those with chronic migraine, are at an increased risk of developing sleep disturbances and sleep apnea (SA), according to the results of a recent study.

The researchers conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data from 16,763 participants from the Chronic Migraine Epidemiology and Outcomes Study. The participants completed baseline and 3-month follow-up surveys assessing risk of SA using the Berlin Scale for Sleep Apnea, self-reported physician diagnosis of SA, and sleep disturbances as measured by the Medical Outcomes Study Sleep Scale.
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Overall, 12,819 of the participants provided valid data, 37% of which were at “high risk” for SA according to the Berlin Scale. SA risk significantly increased with higher body mass index. Among the 10.1% of participants who self-reported SA, 75.7% also reported physician diagnosis.

Commonly reported Medical Outcomes Study sleep subscales were snoring (episodic migraine [EM] 23.1%, chronic migraine [CM] 33.9%), shortness of breath (EM 20.6%, CM 29.8%), daytime somnolence (EM 21.2%, CM 23.4%), and sleep inadequacy (EM 22.1%, CM 24.2%).

“Compared with reported general prevalence estimates ranging from 1.0% to 6.0% for SA, we found an increased risk and potential underdiagnosis of sleep apnea and sleep disturbances among those with migraine, especially CM.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Buse D, Rains J, Pavlovic J, et al. The Relationship between sleep disorders and migraine: results from the chronic migraine epidemiology and outcomes (CaMEO) study [presented at the Congress of the European Academy of Neurology 2017]. Amsterdam, Netherlands. June 24, 2017. Abstract 01109.