Migraine and left-handedness are not associated. A new case-control study and meta-analysis.
To investigate the possible association between migraine and left-handedness, we enrolled 100 patients with a diagnosis of migraine according to the International Headache Society diagnostic criteria and 100 age- and sex-matched control subjects into a case-control study. Handedness was determined by the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory. There was no significant difference in the frequency or grade of left-handedness between the two groups. Additionally, we pooled our data with those from five similar studies, which did not alter the result. Thus, neither our study nor the meta-analysis support Geschwind and Behan's hypothesis of an association between migraine and left-handedness.
Biehl
K
K
Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany. kbiehl@uni-muenster.de
Frese
A
A
Marziniak
M
M
Husstedt
I-W
IW
Evers
S
S
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D007839:Functional Laterality; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic