title: Headaches and pineal cyst: a case-control study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pineal cysts have been suggested to be linked to headache pathogenesis. However, no systematic studies on this topic have been performed so far.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between pineal cysts and headache and to determine the relevance of the cyst size in this context.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a case-control study of patients who consulted the neurological department between 1999 and 2006 to investigate the relationship between pineal cysts and headache and to determine the relevance of the cyst size.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 51 patients with pineal cyst were identified, thereby 51% were suffering from headache (half of them had migraine), whereas in the control group, only 25% had headache (thereof 31% suffered from migraine). There was a significant relationship between headache (as well as migraine) and pineal cysts (chi-square test), but no significant difference in pineal cyst diameter between the patient group with headache versus without headache (t-test).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data provide evidence for a causal relationship between pineal cysts and headache, respectively, migraine in this patient cohort.
authors.affiliation: Technische Universitaet Muenchen-Neurologische Klinik, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Seifert
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Woeller
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Valet
authors.forename: Claus
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zimmer
authors.forename: Achim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Berthele
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tölle
authors.forename: Till
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sprenger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003560:Cysts / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010870:Pineal Gland / Q000473:pathology*