Photo Credit: MichalLudwiczak

The following is a summary of “Photophobia is associated with lower sleep quality in individuals with migraine: results from the American Registry for Migraine Research (ARMR),” published in the April 2024 issue of Pain by Sharp et al.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to investigate the association between photophobia symptoms and sleep quality (SQ) in patients with migraine.

In a cross-sectional observational study, they utilized existing data from the American Registry for Migraine Research (ARMR). Participants diagnosed with migraine and who completed baseline questionnaires (Photosensitivity Assessment Questionnaire (PAQ), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2)), along with selected ARMR Sleep questionnaire items, were included. Models were developed to analyze the relationship between photophobia, photophobia, and various sleep aspects, such as SQ, sleep disturbance (SDis), sleep onset latency (SOL), sleep-related impairments (SRI), and insomnia. Age, sex, headache frequency, anxiety, and depression were controlled for in each model.

The results included 852 patients meeting the inclusion criteria (mean age (SD) = 49.8 (13.9), 86.6% (n = 738) female). Patients with photophobia had markedly worse SQ compared to those without (P<0.001). Photophobia scores correlated with SQ (P<0.001), SDis (P<0.001), SOL (P=0.011), SRI (P=0.020), and insomnia (P=0.005) after adjusting for age, sex, headache frequency, depression, and anxiety, indicating higher photophobia levels linked to poorer sleep outcomes. Conversely, higher photophilia scores were associated with improved sleep outcomes for SQ (P<0.007), SOL (P=0.010), and insomnia (P=0.014).

Investigators concluded photophobia was a key factor in reduced SQ for migraine sufferers, highlighting the need for further exploration of this link to improve migraine management.

Source: thejournalofheadacheandpain.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s10194-024-01756-9