Primary Headaches: Reduced Circulating β-Lipotropin and β-Endorphin Levels with Impaired Reactivity to Acupuncture

Abstract

Eleven patients affected by common migraine (CM), eleven affected by daily chronic headache (DCH), and eight healthy volunteers were studied. Plasma levels of β-endorphin (βEP), β-lipotropin (βLPH), ACTH and cortisol were measured in basal conditions and after traditional Chinese acupuncture (TCA). Basal βLPH and βEP plasma levels (pg/ml) in the DCH patients (57.6 ± 9.5 and 16.8 ± 2.5, respectively; M ± SE) were lower than those found in the controls (83.6 ± 13.7 and 26.0 ± 6.1; p < 0.001), while those found in the CM cases showed intermediate values (75.3 ± 12.0 and 24.4 ± 5.8). ACTH and cortisol concentrations in both the CM and DCH patients were in the same range as those of the control group. TCA caused an increase in βLPH and βEP plasma concentrations in the control group (βLPH: 117 ± 16.9; βEF: 44.6 ± 6.7). Opioid plasma levels, however, remained unmodified after TCA in both the CM and DCH groups. ACTH plasma levels remained stable after TCA in all three subject groups. Patients suffering from primary headache are characterized by low βLPH and βEP plasma levels and by a poor reactivity of circulating opioids to non-stressful stimuli.