Vascular endothelial growth factor in episodic and chronic migraine: new approaches to understanding pathogenesis

The purpose of this study was to investigate serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in women with different types of migraine throughout the menstrual cycle and their relationship with migraine severity, autonomic imbalance, and emotional disorders. The study included 127 women of reproductive age. There were patients with menstrual migraine, menstrually-associated migraine, chronic migraine, and episodic migraine. Significant differences in VEGF were found between migraine patients and control group of women without headaches. The highest VEGF was observed in luteal phase for all types of migraine. Chronic migraine was associated with consistently elevated VEGF regardless of menstrual phase. These results suggest that VEGF may be important in pathogenesis and chronic nature of migraine.