Numular headache is a chronic, mild to moderate, pressurelike pain in a circumscribed cranial area of approximately 2 to 6 cm in diameter. Pain usually is limited to the parietal region, although it may appear in any cranial site. It is a benign process of usually unknown origin.

Spatial changes in pressure pain hypersensitivity are present throughout the cephalic region (temporalis muscle) in both chronic tension-type headache (CTTH) and unilateral migraine. The aim of this study was to assess pressure pain sensitivity topographical maps on the trapezius muscle in 20 patients with CTTH and 20 with unilateral migraine in comparison with 20 healthy controls in a blind design. For this purpose, a pressure algometer was used to assess pressure pain thresholds (PPT) over 11 points of the trapezius muscle: four points in the upper part of the muscle, two over the levator scapulae muscle, two in the middle part, and the remaining three points in the lower part of the muscle. Pressure pain sensitivity maps of both sides (dominant/non-dominant; symptomatic/non-symptomatic) were depicted for patients and controls. CTTH patients showed generalized lower PPT levels compared with both migraine patients (P = 0.03) and controls (P < 0.001). The migraine group had also lower PPT than healthy controls (P < 0.001). The most sensitive location for the assessment of PPT was the neck portion of the upper trapezius muscle in both patient groups and healthy controls (P < 0.001). PPT was negatively related to some clinical pain features in both CTTH and unilateral migraine patients (all P < 0.05). Side-to-side differences were found in strictly unilateral migraine, but not in those subjects with bilateral pain, i.e. CTTH. These data support the influence of muscle hyperalgesia in both CTTH and unilateral migraine patients and point towards a general pressure pain hyperalgesia of neck-shoulder muscles in headache patients, particularly in CTTH.

The interval between indomethacin administration and clinical response may be clinically relevant in the assessment of chronic paroxysmal hemicrania and hemicrania continua and other unilateral headache disorders with which they can be confounded. Eight patients with chronic paroxysmal hemicrania (6 women and 2 men) and 12 patients with hemicrania continua (8 women and 4 men) were entered into the study. The patients were given 50 mg of indomethacin intramuscularly (i.m.) on day 1 and some of them 100 mg IM on day 2 in an open fashion. The usual attack pattern was reestablished prior to the second test. The mean interval between attacks before the two injections (51 +/- 18 minutes) in chronic paroxysmal hemicrania was significantly shorter than the mean after each of the two indomethacin injections (50 mg = 493 +/- 251 minutes; 100 mg = 668 +/- 211 minutes; P < 0.001; Mann-Whitney test). In every patient, there was a clear refractory period after indomethacin. Since the first "expected" attack after indomethacin administration did not occur, it can, with reasonable certainty, be assumed that the protective phase was initiated already prior to the time of the next "anticipated" attack. The mean attack duration was 22 minutes (last three attacks prior to test). The mean interval between the onset of two consecutive pretest attacks was 73 minutes. Since the interval between attacks was rather stable, one is, therefore, probably allowed to assume that the absolute protective effect of indomethacin on average had begun somewhere between 22 (mean attack duration) and 73 minutes after indomethacin injection. Similarly, in hemicrania continua, the time between 50-mg indomethacin injection and complete pain relief was 73 +/- 66 minutes. The pain-free period after indomethacin injection was around 13 hours (i.e., 13 +/- 8 hours after 50 mg and 13 +/- 10 hours after 100 mg). The use of a test dosage of 50 mg of indomethacin IM ('indotest') gives a clear-cut answer and may be a useful tool in the diagnostic arsenal in every unilateral headache for a proper clinical assessment. A diagnosis of chronic paroxysmal hemicrania or hemicrania continua is a serious matter because it may imply life-long treatment with a potentially noxious drug. It is, therefore, of the utmost importance that an 'indotest' is carried out in a standard fashion. In the future, the rules set forth in the present context should be followed, at least in scientific studies. Pain pressure thresholds at cranial and extracranial levels were not significantly modified after indomethacin injection in any of the headaches.

The objectives of this study were: (1) to assess relative frequency of migraine in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients using the validated self-administered diagnostic questionnaire, and to compare the migraine rates in MS outpatients to age- and gender-matched historical population controls; (2) to compare clinical and radiographic characteristics in MS patients with migraine and headache-free MS patients. We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the demographic profiles, headache features and clinical characteristics of MS patients attending a MS clinic using a questionnaire based on the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention (AMPP) study. We compared the relative frequency of migraine in MS clinic patients and AMPP cohort. We also compared clinical and radiographic features in MS patients with migraine to an MS control group without headache. Among 204 MS patients, the relative frequency of migraine was threefold higher than in population controls both for women [55.7 vs. 17.1%; prevalence ratio (PR) = 3.26, p < 0.001] and men (18.4 vs. 5.6%; PR = 3.29, p < 0.001). In a series of logistic regression models that controlled for age, gender, disease duration, β-interferon use, and depression, migraine in MS patients was significantly associated (p < 0.01) with trigeminal and occipital neuralgia, facial pain, Lhermitte’s sign, temporomandibular joint pain, non-headache pain and a past history of depression. Migraine status was not significantly associated with disability on patient-derived disability steps scale or T2 lesion burden on brain MRI. Migraine is three-times more common in MS clinic patients than in general population. MS–migraine group was more symptomatic than the MS–no headache group.

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Objective:To (1) determine the value of the recently proposed criteria of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) spectrum disorder (NMOSD) that unify patients with NMO and those with limited forms (NMO/LF) with aquaporin-4 immunoglobulin G (AQP4-IgG) antibodies; and (2) investigate the clinical significance of the serologic status in patients with NMO.Methods:This was a retrospective, multicenter study of 181 patients fulfilling the 2006 NMO criteria (n = 127) or NMO/LF criteria with AQP4-IgG (n = 54). AQP4-IgG and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein immunoglobulin G (MOG-IgG) antibodies were tested using cell-based assays.Results:Patients were mainly white (86%) and female (ratio 6.5:1) with median age at onset 39 years (range 10–77). Compared to patients with NMO and AQP4-IgG (n = 94), those with NMO/LF presented more often with longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) (p < 0.001), and had lower relapse rates (p = 0.015), but similar disability outcomes. Nonwhite ethnicity and optic neuritis presentation doubled the risk for developing NMO compared with white race (p = 0.008) or LETM presentation (p = 0.008). Nonwhite race (hazard ratio [HR] 4.3, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4–13.6) and older age at onset were associated with worse outcome (for every 10-year increase, HR 1.7, 95% CI 1.3–2.2). Patients with NMO and MOG-IgG (n = 9) had lower female:male ratio (0.8:1) and better disability outcome than AQP4-IgG-seropositive or double-seronegative patients (p < 0.001).Conclusions:In patients with AQP4-IgG, the similar outcomes regardless of the clinical phenotype support the unified term NMOSD; nonwhite ethnicity and older age at onset are associated with worse outcome. Double-seronegative and AQP4-IgG-seropositive NMO have a similar clinical outcome. The better prognosis of patients with MOG-IgG and NMO suggests that phenotypic and serologic classification is useful.

Lamotrigine should be considered in clinical practice for the preventive treatment of selected patients with disturbing migraine auras. Lamotrigine seems worthy of a controlled trial as prophylaxis of migraine aura.