• O Y Chernyshev, A M Vein, N T Mathew, O A Kolosova, J Kailasam, A Frolov, A B Danilov, L Meadors, P Gentry, and A V Alexandrov.
• Houston (Tex) Headache Clinic, USA.
• Headache. 2001 Jul 1; 41 (7): 704-9.

ObjectiveTo evaluate blood flow velocity and pulsatility in unilateral migraine without aura during the headache-free period using transcranial Doppler (TCD) sonography.MethodsPatients with unilateral headache were recruited during the headache-free period. Maximum mean flow velocity (MFV) and pulsatility index (PI) were measured in the middle cerebral (MCA) and basilar arteries. Controls were headache-free individuals without cerebrovascular disease.ResultsTwenty-five patients with right-sided migraine, 25 patients with left-sided migraine, and 19 controls were studied. The MCA PI was higher on the right headache side versus the left headache side (0.97 +/- 0.2 versus 0.86 +/- 0.1 cm/s, P =.02) and versus controls (0.9 +/- 0.2 cm/s, NS). The basilar artery MFV was higher in patients with right-sided headache versus left-sided headache (39.5 +/- 5.6 versus 34.7 +/- 8.2 cm/s, P =.02) and versus controls (38.2 +/- 8 cm/s, NS). No decrease in MFV with age was observed in patients with migraine.ConclusionsMiddle cerebral artery flow pulsatility and basilar artery velocity are higher in patients with right-sided migraine compared with left-sided migraineurs, during the headache-free period. Although these parameters were similar to controls, the differences found during the headache-free period in migraineurs may indicate vascular involvement predisposing to the unilateral headache recurrence.

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