title: Visual attention in children with migraine: a controlled comparative study.
abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the visual attention of children with migraine and compare it with a control group. Thirty migrainous children and 30 controls without headache were subjected to a visual attention assessment with Trail Making Tests (TMT) A/B, Letter Cancellation Test, and the Brazilian computerized test Visual Attention Test, third edition. The migraine group was evaluated after 2 days without headache. The migraine group had an inferior performance compared with the control group on TMT A (P = 0.03) and B (P = 0.001), and more errors on tasks 1 (P = 0.032) and 2 (P = 0.015) of the Visual Attention Test, presenting difficulty with selective and alternate attention. Attention is a neurological function that depends on structures such as the brainstem, cerebral cortex and the limbic system and on neurotransmitters such as dopamine and noradrenaline. The neurochemical aspects involved in the physiopathology of migraine and attention mechanisms probably predispose these children to visual attention deficits.
authors.affiliation: Division of Investigation and Treatment of Headaches, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery Federal University of São Paulo-UNIFESP, São Paulo-SP, Brazil. cvdiniz@terra.com.br
authors.forename: T R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Villa
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Correa Moutran
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Sobirai Diaz
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Pereira Pinto
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Gabbai
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: de Souza Carvalho
mesh_terms: D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D014145:Trail Making Test