ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The determination of serum magnesium levels in migraine. METHODS: In a case control study performed between January 2007 and December 2007 at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran, 140 migraine patients were enrolled and their level of serum magnesium was determined and the results were compared with 140 healthy people who did not have any headache, kidney, or gastrointestinal disorders, and no consumption of magnesium complements. RESULTS: Migraine patients (22 male, 118 female) with a mean age of 33.82+/-10.31 and 140 healthy people (26 male, 114 female) with a mean age of (34.19+/-9.95) were enrolled. Forty patients had aura and 100 patients did not have aura. The average serum magnesium level in the patient group (26.14+/-4.3) was significantly lower than the control (31.09+/-4.32) group (p=0.000). There was no significant difference between the mean level of serum magnesium in patients with migraine with aura and without aura, however, there was a significant linear relationship between the amount of serum magnesium and the frequency of headache. CONCLUSION: Serum magnesium in migraine patients was significantly lower than the normal population and related to the frequency of migraine attacks, supporting the use of magnesium in prevention and treatment of migraine.
Subject(s)
Magnesium/blood , Migraine Disorders/blood , Migraine Disorders/epidemiology , Adult , Case-Control Studies , Comorbidity , Female , Humans , Iran/epidemiology , Magnesium/physiology , Magnesium/therapeutic use , Magnesium Deficiency/blood , Magnesium Deficiency/diagnosis , Magnesium Deficiency/epidemiology , Male , Middle Aged , Migraine Disorders/diagnosis , Severity of Illness Index , Time FactorsABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Simultaneous involvements of multiple cranial nerve ganglia (geniculate ganglion and peripheral ganglia of cranial nerves VIII, IX and X) by varicella-zoster virus and its subsequent activation may result in the characteristic eruptions of herpes zoster cephalicus. Coexistence of facial palsy and involvement of upper cervical dermatomes by varicella-zoster virus is quite rare. CASE PRESENTATION: Here, we report a 71-year-old Iranian man with involvement of multiple sensory ganglia (geniculate ganglion and upper dorsal root ganglia) by varicella-zoster virus. He presented with right-sided facial weakness along with vesicular eruptions on the right side of his neck, and second and third cervical dermatomes. CONCLUSION: The present case is an example of herpes zoster cephalicus with cervical nerve involvement. Although resembling Ramsay Hunt syndrome with presence of facial nerve paralysis and accompanying vesicles, involvement of cervical dermatomes is not a feature of the classic Ramsay Hunt syndrome.
