ABSTRACT

Migraine and epilepsy are two distinct neurological conditions and, despite many reviews of the relationship between them, the nature of this association remains unresolved. The frequencies of epilepsy in patients with migraine, and of migraine in those with epilepsy, seem to be higher than one would expect, suggesting that there may be comorbidity in both conditions. The concurrence of the two disorders suggests the hypothesis that both are caused by a genetic disorder. These diseases have prominent genetic components. The difficulty in understanding these diseases arises from the complexity of the clinical phenotypes as well as from the genetic heterogeneity that almost certainly exists. The similarities between these disorders, including their episodic nature, precipitating factors and therapeutic response, are striking. As a result, a shared genetic susceptibility to both disorders may be responsible for an underlying brain state that is common to both. Any association would imply that clinicians treating either disorder should have a high index of suspicion for the other and should be well informed about the diagnosis, classification and treatment of both disorders.