RESUMEN
Objective: to investigate the frequency of white matter abnormalities [WMAs] in patients with migraine and their relationship to type, duration, and frequency of migraine attacks
Methods: eighty four patients with migraine whose ages ranged between 16 and 50 years were evaluated. Twenty four patients had migraine with aura and 60 had migraine without aura, according to the diagnostic criteria of the International Headache Society. Patients with known vascular risk factors were excluded. Twenty age and sex matched healthy subjects were used as a control group. MRI brain was done in all patients and control group and evaluated for the presence of white matter lesions
Results: in 15 [17.9%] of 84 patients, white matter abnormalities were present on magnetic resonance imaging. Ten of these patients [66.7%] had migraine with aura, and 5 patients [33.3%] had migraine without aura. The presence of white matter foci was significantly higher in patients with aura than in those without aura [p<0.001]. Patients with WMAs were significantly older than those without [p<0.05]. Frequency of WMAs was significantly higher in those with history of more than two attacks per month [P<0.05]. The presence of WMAs was not significantly related to sex, disease duration or ergotamine consumption
We conclude that patients with migraine may have non-specific WMAs. Detection of white matter foci should be interpreted with particular caution before diagnosing other conditions since these lesions could be ischemic in origin and related to age, migraine with aura and attack frequency
RESUMEN
The aim of this work is to obtain morphological evidence of subclinical atherosclerosis [AS] in rheumatoid arthritis [RA]patients compared with healthy controls, by evaluating intima-media thickness [IMT] of the common carotid artery [CCA] .The study included 40 patients with RA and 40 age and sex-matched controls. B-mode ultrasound [U/S] was used for measurement of the IMT of the CCA. The results were related to disease activity markers and to serum lipid levels. The study showed that IMT of CCA was significantly higher in RA patients compared with controls, and correlated significantly with serum lipids. However, no significant correlation was found between IMT of CCA and C-reactive protein or erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The prevalence of plaques was non-significantly higher in RA patients, and patients with plaques had significantly higher levels of lipids than those without plaques. Therefore, RA patients appeard to had an ultrasonic evidence of early AS, that was related to serum lipid levels