Migraine lowers death risk in stress induced 'Takotsubo' cardiomyopathy

USA: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM) patients with migraine have lower odds of mortality and acute complications (heart failure exacerbation, cardiac arrest, acute kidney injury) versus TCM patients without migraine, a recent study has claimed. The study was published online in the journal Cardiovascular Revascularization Medicine on March 24, 2022. 

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy or "Broken Heart Syndrome" is an acute left ventricular dysfunction that is typically due to a neuro-cardiogenic mechanism. The role of migraines in hospitalized TCM patients has not been studied although many stressors can precipitate TCM. Considering this, Jobin Joseph Varghese, MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC, USA, and colleagues aimed to describe the in-hospital outcomes of TCM in patients with a concurrent diagnosis of migraines.

For this purpose, the researchers queried the National Inpatient Sample database for the International Classification of Diseases-ninth Revision to conduct a US-wide analysis of TCM hospitalizations from 2013 to 2017. Using the ICD-10 codes, they identified patients admitted with a principal diagnosis of TCM with a history of migraines. 

The comparison was then made between TCM patients with migraines and TCM patients without migraines with regards to mortality and acute inpatient complications (intubation, cardiac arrest, heart failure exacerbation, acute kidney injury).