title: Maternal stress and childhood migraine: a new perspective on management.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Migraine without aura is a primary headache which is frequent and disabling in the developmental age group. No reports are available concerning the prevalence and impact of migraine in children on the degree of stress experienced by parents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of maternal stress in a large pediatric sample of individuals affected by migraine without aura.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study population consisted of 218 children (112 boys, 106 girls) of mean age 8.32 ± 2.06 (range 6-13) years suffering from migraine without aura and a control group of 405 typical developing children (207 boys, 198 girls) of mean age 8.54 ± 2.47 years. Mothers of children in each group answered the Parent Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF) questionnaire to assess parental stress levels.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The two groups were matched for age (P = 0.262), gender (P = 0.983), and body mass index adjusted for age (P = 0.106). Mothers of children with migraine without aura reported higher mean PSI-SF scores related to the Parental Distress domain (P < 0.001), Dysfunctional Parent-Child Interaction domain (P < 0.001), Difficult Child subscale (P < 0.001), and Total Stress domain than mothers of controls (P < 0.001). No differences between the two groups were found for Defensive Responding subscale scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study may be the first to highlight the presence of high levels of stress in parents of children affected by migraine without aura.
authors.affiliation: Center for Childhood Headache, Clinic of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Department of Mental Health, Physical, and Preventive Medicine, Second University of Naples, Naples.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Esposito
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gallai
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roccella
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Marotta
authors.forename: Serena Marianna
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Lavano
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gritti
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mazzotta
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carotenuto
keywords: childhood migraine; children; migraine without aura; parental stress