Are there network differences between the ipsilateral and contralateral hemispheres of pain in patients with episodic migraine without aura?

Abstract

Background: We aimed to identify any differences in the structural covariance network based on structural volume and those in the functional network based on cerebral blood flow between the ipsilateral and contralateral hemispheres of pain in patients with episodic migraine without aura.Methods: We prospectively enrolled 27 patients with migraine without aura, all of whom had unilateral migraine pain. We defined the ipsilateral hemisphere as the side of migraine pain. We measured structural volumes on three-dimensional T1-weighted images and cerebral blood flow using arterial spin labeling magnetic resonance imaging. We then analyzed the structural covariance network based on structural volume and the functional network based on cerebral blood flow using graph theory. Results: There were no significant differences in structural volume or cerebral blood flow between the ipsilateral and contralateral hemispheres. However, there were significant differences between the hemispheres in the structural covariance network and the functional network. In the structural covariance network, the betweenness centrality of the thalamus was lower in the ipsilateral hemisphere than in the contralateral hemisphere. In the functional network, the betweenness centrality of the anterior cingulate and paracingulate gyrus was lower in the ipsilateral hemisphere than in the contralateral hemisphere, while that of the opercular part of the inferior frontal gyrus was higher in the former hemisphere.Conclusions: The present findings indicate that there are significant differences in the structural covariance network and the functional network between the ipsilateral and contralateral hemispheres of pain in patients with episodic migraine without aura.