Migraine risk elevated in adults with lightly pigmented skin, study finds

Poland: Adults with light skin pigmentation marked by low melanin levels are at a greater risk of migraine, suggests study results published in Brain Sciences. The study was a cohort among the European population.

The objective of Magdalena Kobus, the University of Lodz in Poland, and colleagues for this study was to provide evidence of the association between skin pigmentation and the prevalence of migraine in adults.

Skin pigmentation is the color of your skin due to a certain amount of melanin, a heterogeneous group of natural pigment. Skin could become darker or lighter depending on melanin production in the body. Populations with a relatively low concentration of melanin, e.g., inhabitants of Europe, North America, and Australia, are the most vulnerable to the harmful effects of UV radiation

Migraine is a common neurological disease that affects a large percentage of the global population. Diagnosis is based on symptoms that may include nausea, vomiting, light/sound sensitivity, and often visual, sensory, or speech symptoms. Limited knowledge of skin-pigmentation and neurological diseases makes migraine an interesting field of study of their relationship.

Researchers examined a group of 148 adults (33 men, 115 women) with migraine and a control group of 107 adults (43 men, 64 women). Parameters of skin pigmentation (melanin index, erythema index, CIElab, and RGB scales) were measured using a DSM II Cortex Technology dermospectrophotometer.

Key findings of the study are,

• The risk of migraine was high in lightly pigmented adults.

• Individuals with a low melanin index had over a 3-fold increased risk of migraine (women: OR 3.53, men: OR 3.73).

• Fair phototype, which results from lightly pigmented skin, was associated with migraine prevalence.

Researchers conclude that the present study shows the problem from a public health perspective that the individuals with migraine problems should pay more attention to the usage of sun-blocking products because of less inherent protection from UV radiation.

Additionally, bright light is one of the many triggers—as well as aggravating factors—of migraine attacks, so individuals with migraine are more susceptible and vulnerable to sunlight in two different ways. This presents the problem of migraine as multifactorial, both from a researcher's and a patient perspective.

The present study offers a new perspective to investigate the correlation between skin pigmentation patterns and the risk of migraine in adults, the authors wrote.

Reference:

Kobus M, Żądzińska E, Sitek A, Pełka J, Rożniecki JJ, Antoszewski B. Risk of Migraine in Europeans with Low Melanin Levels—A Population Based Case-Control Study. Brain Sciences. 2022; 12(5):620. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12050620