Selective Attention and Mental Flexibility are Reduced during the Interictal Period in Migraine

Background: Headache patients frequently complain about difficulties in attention and concentration, even when they are headache free, and psychometric studies concerning attentional deficits in migraine patients between attacks are scarce. Objective: To evaluate selective attention of migraine patients interictally and compare them with healthy volunteers. Patients and Methods: We performed, between February 2011 and July 2011, a case-control study including 45 university students suffering from migraine matched with 45 healthy students as controls. Migraine patients were evaluated in an interictal state. Subjects with another headache type, history of brain injury, epilepsy and visual disturbances were excluded. Mood disorders were assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression (HAD) questionnaire. Selective attention was evaluated using the Delis–Kaplan Executive Functions System (D-KEFS) colour-word interference test. Results: Mean age of patients was 23.29±2.55 years, versus 22.89±2.04 years for controls (p=0.2). The selective attention score was −4.04±7.08 for patients, versus −1.31±7.73 for controls (p=0.02). The mean mental flexibility score was lower in migraine patients compared with controls (36.67±6.79 versus 41.33±6.23; p=0.01). Gender, anxiety, depression scores and migraine characteristics had no correlation with the selective attention score. Conclusion: Selective attention and mental flexibility capacities are significantly reduced in migraine patients during the interictal period. These abnormalities probably contribute to frequent attentional complaints among these patients.