Patients diagnosed with migraine headaches are at least 20% more likely to have dry eye disease (DED) than those without migraines, according to a study by University of North Carolina researchers.
The retrospective case-control, population-based study looked at about 73,000 patients over 18 years. It found men aged 65 or above, who had migraines, were nearly twice as likely to also have dry eye disease, while in women the risk was almost two-and-a-half times higher.
The association between migraine and dry eye increased with age, particularly for women, which the researchers said was due to hormonal changes caused by pregnancy, the use of oral contraceptives and menopause.
“Our results suggest female sex and advanced age play an important role in determining the strength of this association. Physicians caring for patients with a history of migraine headaches should be aware these patients may be at risk for comorbid DED”, the authors concluded.
The exact mechanism underlying the relationship between migraine headaches and DED was unclear, but it is well established underlying inflammatory processes play a significant role in the pathogenesis of both disorders, they said. Inflammatory changes in DED might trigger events in neurovascular tissue, leading to the development and propagation of migraine headaches or vice versa, and excessive dryness of the ocular surface can trigger reflex tearing via the trigeminal nerve, triggering auras and acute migraine attacks, given the role of the trigeminal ganglion in the pathophysiology of migraine headaches, they added.
