Introduction Interictal deficits of elementary visuo-cognitive functions are well documented in patients with migraine and are mostly explained in terms of neocortical hyperexcitability. It has been suggested that the basal ganglia and the hippocampi might also be affected in migraine. If so, a deterioration of learning and memory processes related to these structures is expected. Methods A visual learning paradigm thought to be capable of dissociating learning/memory processes mediated by the basal ganglia from processes mediated by the hippocampus (the Rutgers Acquired Equivalence Test) was applied to a group of patients with migraine without aura and to age- and sex-matched controls. Results Patients with migraine showed a significantly poorer performance in both main phases of the test and the deficit in the phase considered to be dependent on the hippocampi was especially marked. Conclusions These results can be interpreted as behavioural support for findings that have suggested the involvement of the basal ganglia and the hippocampi in migraine, but further research is needed to clarify these findings.
Keywords: Migraine; acquired equivalence; basal ganglia; hippocampus; learning.