Association between migraine and cardiovascular disease: A cross-sectional study

Kai Wang; Yukang Mao; Miao Lu; Yinzhang Ding; Zhongming Li; Yansong Li; Xianling Liu; Yan Sun; Jian Hong; Di Xu; Tingting Wu

doi:10.3389/fcvm.2022.1044465

Association between migraine and cardiovascular disease: A cross-sectional study

Front Cardiovasc Med. 2022 Nov 24:9:1044465. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2022.1044465. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Kai Wang¹, Yukang Mao^{2

3}, Miao Lu¹, Yinzhang Ding², Zhongming Li¹, Yansong Li¹, Xianling Liu¹, Yan Sun¹, Jian Hong¹, Di Xu¹, Tingting Wu²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.
² Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.
³ Department of Cardiology, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) poses a tremendous threat to global health, giving rise to exceedingly high morbidity and mortality among patients. A migraine is a common neurological disorder characterized by recurrent attacks of severe headache, while its cardiovascular burden remains unclear. Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether migraine is associated with CVD.

Methods: The cross-sectional data of 5,692 subjects aged 20 or above was obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2004. To determine whether migraine is associated with CVD, weighted logistic regression models were used. In a subsequent subgroup analysis, several confounding factors were also explored to investigate the association between migraine and CVD.

Results: In total, 5,692 subjects were enrolled in this study, with the prevalence of CVD being 13.3%. Participants with CVD tended to be older, male, non-Hispanic whites, more educated, former smokers, and alcohol drinkers, and had a higher waist circumference, less physical activity, a higher level of triglyceride and creatinine as well as a lower level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (all P < 0.05). Considering all potential confounders, migraine was associated with a higher risk of CVD [odds ratios (ORs) 2.77; 95% confidence intervals (CIs): 1.56-4.90]. Subgroup analysis showed a higher risk of CVD in females, those older than 60 years, with a lower body mass index (BMI) level (≤ 30 kg/m²), a higher level of eGFR (> 90 mL/min/1.73 m²), hypertension and hyperlipidemia and without diabetes.

Conclusion: In summary, our study revealed a positive association between migraine with CVD in a nationally representative US adult population. Our findings highlighted that migraine should be considered an important risk factor for CVD.

Keywords: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES); adults; cardiovascular disease; cross-sectional study; migraine.