AN interesting discussion was "Should we neuroimage patients with a transient hemianopic migrainous phenomenon?"
Below is a paper on CADASIL, and suggests that these visual phenomenon may not be as benign as we think.
Prevalence and characteristics of migraine in CADASIL
Stephanie Guey1,2, Je´roˆme Mawet1,3, Dominique Herve´ 1,2,
Marco Duering4, Ophelia Godin1, Eric Jouvent1,2,
Christian Opherk5, Nassira Alili1, Martin Dichgans4,6
and Hugues Chabriat1,2
Abstract
Background and objective: Migraine with aura (MA) is a major symptom of cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy
with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL). We assessed the spectrum of migraine symptoms
and their potential correlates in a large prospective cohort of CADASIL individuals.
Methods: A standardized questionnaire was used in 378 CADASIL patients for assessing headache symptoms, trigger
factors, age at first attack, frequency of attacks and associated symptoms. MRI lesions and brain atrophy were quantified.
Results: A total of 54.5% of individuals had a history of migraine, mostly MA in 84% of them; 62.4% of individuals with
MA were women and age at onset of MA was lower in women than in men. Atypical aura symptoms were experienced
by 59.3% of individuals with MA, and for 19.7% of patients with MA the aura was never accompanied by headache. MA
was the inaugural manifestation in 41% of symptomatic patients and an isolated symptom in 12.1% of individuals. Slightly
higher MMSE and MDRS scores and lower Rankin score were detected in the MA group.
Conclusion: MA is observed in almost half of all CADASIL patients. Atypical aura symptoms are reported by more than
one in two of them. MA is often inaugural, can remain isolated and is not associated with the severity of the disorder.
J Neurol. 2010 Feb;257(2):259-63. doi: 10.1007/s00415-009-5305-1.