Alexithymia, Metacognition, and Theory of Mind in Children and Preadolescents With Migraine Without Aura (MWoA): A Case-Control Study

Social cognition in chronic migraine with medication overuse: a cross-sectional study on different aspects of mentalization and social relationships

BACKGROUND

Social cognition refers to all mental operations to decipher information needed in social interactions. Here we aimed to outline the socio-cognitive profile of Chronic Migraine with Medication Overuse (CM + MO), given they are recognized to be at risk of socio-cognitive difficulties. Given the multidimensionality of this construct, we considered: (1) socio-cognitive abilities, (2) socio-cognitive beliefs, (3) alexithymia and autism traits, and (4) social relationships.

METHODS

Seventy-one patients suffering from CM + MO, 61 from episodic migraine (EM), and 80 healthy controls (HC) were assessed with a comprehensive battery: (1) the Faux Pas test (FP), the Strange Stories task (SS), the Reading Mind in the Eyes test (RMET), (2) the Tromsø Social Intelligence Scale, (3) the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, the Autism Spectrum Quotient, (4) the Lubben Social Network Scale, the Friendship Scale.

RESULTS

CM + MO: (1) performed similar to EM but worse than HC in the FP and SS, while they were worse than EM and HC in the RMET; (2) were similar to EM and HC in social intelligence; (3) had more alexithymic/autistic traits than EM and HC; (4) reported higher levels of contact with their family members but felt little support from the people around them than HC.

CONCLUSIONS

CM + MO results characterized by a profile of compromised socio-cognitive abilities that affects different dimensions. These findings may have a relevant role in multiple fields related to chronic headache: from the assessment to the management.

Theory of Mind in migraine and medication-overuse headache: A cross-sectional study

Background

Theory of Mind (ToM) is the ability to predict and anticipate others' behaviors through the mental state attribution process. This study aims to investigate the ToM in patients with medication-overuse headache (MOH) and episodic migraine (EM) and to compare it with healthy controls (HC).

Methods

This study enrolled patients with MOH, patients with EM, and HC. ToM was assessed through the Theory of Mind Assessment Scale (ThOMAS), which includes four subscales: Scale A, I-Me, Scale B, Other-Self, Scale C, I-Other, and Scale D, Other-Me, through the Reading the Mind in the Eyes test (RMET), which measures complex emotion recognition, and through the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), which measures alexithymia. Concomitant psychiatric disturbances were evaluated through the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, and the Dissociative Experiences Scale-II.

Results

The study involved 21 patients with EM, 22 patients with MOH, and 18 HC. In all the four subscales of the ThOMAS, there was a significant difference between HC, EM, and MOH patients: Scale A (p = 0.009), Scale B (p = 0.004), Scale C (p = 0.039), and Scale D (p = 0.008). In the RMET, MOH patients had worse performances than EM patients and HC (p = 0.039). MOH group exhibited higher levels of alexithymia when compared to the HC (p = 0.033) and higher levels of anxiety than HC (p = 0.001).

Conclusion

MOH patients showed a subtle psychopathological pattern characterized by impaired social adaptation.

Early maladaptive schemas differing according to sex may contribute to migraine among the youth

OBJECTIVE

Despite many diverse findings from studies about the comorbidity of psychiatric disorders and migraine, there are still unknown points. Schemas, which are the basic structures of cognition, are understudied. This study examined the effects of sex on early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) and the clinical characteristics of migraine in adolescents with migraine.

METHODS

The sample comprised 171 adolescents (67.3% females, n = 115) aged 12-18 years. The clinical characteristics of migraine (duration, severity, frequency of headaches, etc.), accompanying symptoms (nausea, vomiting, photophobia, etc.) and EMSs were evaluated depending on sex. Psychopathology and abuse history were analyzed as covariates in this study.

RESULTS

The mean age was 15.4 ± 1.9 among the females and 15.2 ± 2.0 among the males (p = 0.65). There was no difference in terms of migraine characteristics, and except for dizziness and pain relief by massage, all other symptoms were similar between the sexes. Female adolescent migraineurs significantly elevated scores for EMS of emotional deprivation, abandonment/instability, defectiveness/shame (disconnection/rejection domain), dependence/incompetence, vulnerability to harm/illness, failure (in impaired autonomy/performance domain) and negativity/pessimism (in hypervigilance/inhibition domain). On the other hand, male migraineurs had significantly elevated scores only in insufficient self-control/self-discipline (in impaired limits domain). Type of migraine and current psychopathology had no significant effect on the EMS domains, while sexual abuse history significantly affected some EMS.

CONCLUSION

Our study highlights the importance of screening for EMSs among adolescent patients with migraine. Schema therapy and similar therapeutic interventions may be used in the management of migraine in adolescents. Gender may also be important factor the schema therapy in adolescent migraine patients.

Migraine and epilepsy: Social cognition skills in pediatric population

INTRODUCTION

The goal of the present study was to comparatively analyze Social Cognition skills in a pediatric population diagnosed with Migraine or Epilepsy, compared to Typically Developing children (TD). The secondary aim was to relate Social Cognition skills with other migraine- or epilepsy-related variables and with executive and cognitive functions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In our cross-sectional observational study 119 children and adolescents (aged 6-16) with Migraine or Focal Epilepsy and 61 TD peers were recruited. Both the clinical groups and TD peers performed a neuropsychological evaluation through standardized test to assess Theory of Mind (TM), Emotion Recognition through facial expression (ER), executive function and non-verbal cognitive abilities.

RESULTS

Children and adolescents with Migraine or Focal Epilepsy showed comparable scores between each other, however their scores were significantly lower than their TD peers, in both ER and TM. Social Cognition skills were significantly related to executive functions.

CONCLUSION

Our study suggests that some chronic neurological conditions in childhood, such as Migraine and Epilepsy, may be associated with difficulties in Social Cognition skills, and that these difficulties may be related to a deficit in executive functions. The relationship between these two higher cognitive abilities should be further explored in future studies. Our results also suggest the importance of monitoring cognitive abilities in pediatric patients with Migraine or Epilepsy, in order to detect early impairment and ensure the necessary support.

Correlates of distress in young people with cystic fibrosis: the role of self-efficacy and metacognitive beliefs

OBJECTIVES

While significantly elevated distress is repeatedly found amongst young people with cystic fibrosis, their determinants remain largely unknown. This study explored whether metacognitive beliefs and self-efficacy for emotion regulation were associated with anxiety and depression after control for physical functioning, age and gender.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study using a 110-item online questionnaire.

METHODS

An online survey was undertaken by 147 young people with CF aged 10-18 from five countries. Associations of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores with gender, age, physical functioning, Metacognitive Beliefs Questionnaire for Children (MCQ-C) subscales and Self-Efficacy for Emotion Regulation (SE-ER) were examined using hierarchical multiple linear regressions.

RESULTS

Physical functioning, gender and age accounted for 31% of the variance in anxiety and 39% in depression. The MCQ-C and SE-ER added another 45% to the variance of anxiety and 32% to depression. At the final step of both analyses, physical functioning, SE-ER, MCQ-C Negative Meta-Worry and Superstition, Punishment & Responsibility contributed significantly. Older age was also significantly associated with depression.

CONCLUSIONS

Self-efficacy for emotion regulation, concern about worrying and shame may be particularly important foci for interventions aimed at ameliorating anxiety and depression in young people with CF.

The Relationship Between Parental Care and Pain in Children With Headache: A Narrative Review

PURPOSE

In migraine or primary headache in children, parents play a fundamental role in pain management. For this narrative review, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Psych Info were searched using the terms "parent headache", "mother/father headache", "parental impact headache", "alexithymia parents headache", "catastrophizing parent headache", "family headache", "children parent headache", and "quality of life family headache". Articles were chosen for inclusion based on their relevance in to the topic.

OVERVIEW

Several parental and psychological characteristics can influence in children and adolescent headache, such as parental attitudes as oppressive or overprotective; punitive parenting styles; familial psychological symptoms, especially anxiety and depression; catastrophizing about their child's pain or excessive worry about their child's headache; inability to express emotions; and feelings that may lead to somatization problems.

DISCUSSION

Parents' attitudes and behaviors toward their child's headache have a strong relation with the severity of headache attacks. Mothers seem to have more influence than fathers on children's pain and emotional regulation. We suggest that the presence of caregiver-child transmission of maladaptive coping strategies, arising from difficulties expressing emotion, may lead to incorrect management of headache pain, further facilitating headache chronification.