The Impact of Acupuncture Treatment on dynamic thiol–disulphide homeostasis and ischemia-modified albumin levels to assess the oxidative stress in Migraine Patients

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of acupuncture on dynamic thiol–disulphide homeostasis and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels as a novel oxidative stress parameter in migraine patients. Acupuncture treatment was applied to the 22 volunteer migraine patients. The acupuncture treatment consists of 5 sessions with 2 sessions per week. Blood samples have been collected before performing acupuncture, after the 1st session and after the 5th session of the acupuncture. And for the control group blood samples were collected only once. A total of 44 participants were included in the study, and 24 of whom were diagnosed with migraine. The total thiol, native thiol and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels in the serum were measured in all patients and healthy individuals. The dynamic disulphide bond and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels were calculated from these values. The total and native thiol levels of migraine patients participating in the study were found to be significantly higher than the total and native thiol levels of healthy individuals. The total thiol, native thiol, and dynamic disulphide bond levels, and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) were correlated with attack frequency, pain intensity, or migraine type. Thiol-disülfide homeostasis can play roles in the etiology and severity of Migraine.