In the first of these studies, Mattsson evaluated 684 peri- and postmenopausal women between 40 and 74 years of age, with a mean age of 54 (Table 5).33 Importantly, this was the first general population study to use both ICHD criteria for the diagnosis of migraine and to estimate TBO using measured body mass indices. Neither migraine prevalence nor migraine attack frequency was associated with TBO.33 In the second study of peri- and post menopausal women, Winter et al evaluated

over 63,000 women 45 years of age or older, with a mean age of 54, (Table 5).34 The diagnosis of migraine was evaluated using self-reported information in a manner previously shown to correlate well with ICHD criteria.35 TBO was evaluated using self-reported check details Selleckchem AZD2281 height and weight. Two important findings were noted. First, although an age-adjusted increased relative risk for the prevalence of migraine was found in those with a BMI ≥ 35, adjustment for major cardiovascular risk factors and postmenopausal status completely attenuated this association. This finding supports results from Mattsson et al that there is no association between migraine prevalence and obesity in peri- and postmenopausal women. Second, the

Winter et al data support the findings from Bigal et al suggesting that the association between BMI and migraine frequency may be J-shaped. Compared with women with a BMI of 27 and 29, the relative odds of having daily migraine attacks was over 3-fold increased for women with active migraine and a BMI of ≥ 35; in addition there was an over 2-fold increase for women with active migraine and a BMI of <23.34 The third general

population study evaluating the association between migraine and TBO also evaluated older men and evaluated the prevalence of migraine and severe headaches in those older individuals with abdominal obesity.14 As in the previous studies, Peterlin et al found that TBO was not associated with migraine prevalence in older women and extended this MRIP finding to older men (Table 5). However, abdominal obesity was associated with a 26% decreased odds of migraine or severe headache in women (OR 74; CI: 0.58-0.94), a finding independent of TBO. These results may suggest that the sexual dimorphism and aging-related changes in the metabolic function of adipose tissue, such as seen with cardiovascular disease or all cause mortality or a survivorship bias may play a role in the obesity–migraine relationship.14 Further studies using ICHD criteria and measured body mass indices are needed. 1 Migraine prevalence is not associated with TBO in older women and men.