Impact of comorbid primary headache on neurological function of patients with multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a progressive disease affecting the working population. Due to the demyelination process, patients have motor, sensory and cognitive impairments. Often patients with MS complain of headaches. Comorbid primary headache accompanies more than half of patients with MS. The aim of our study was to reveal the relationship between the presence of primary comorbid headache and the progression of MS. For this purpose, the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), motor testing for 25-Foot Walk Test (25FWT), 9-Hole Peg Test (9HPT) were used. International Classification of Headache - 3 (ICHD-3) scale was used for differential diagnosis of headache types. The obtained data were compared among patients with different types of MS: Relapsing-Remitting (RRMS); primary and secondary progressive, which was combined into Progressive forms of MS (PMS). 130 patients with MS were studied, among whom patients with RRMS prevailed (n=98), primary comorbid headache was found in 56.2% (n=73). Among patients with MS, migraine prevailed (p=0.015), in particular, the most cases were found in patients with RRMS. Among patients with PMS, tension headache prevailed (p<0.05). The 9HPT and 25FWT scores did not differ significantly between the groups with and without primary comorbid headache, however, according to the confidence intervals, the EDSS score exceeded the score in the group of patients with comorbid headache. It was found that patients with comorbid migraine performed the motor test faster than patients with tension type headache. Therefore, it can be concluded that comorbid primary headache may have an impact on motor function indicators among MS patients and requires further investigation to determine the role of comorbid headache in the patterns of initial MS symptoms.