South Korean study suggests migraines may be a risk factor for OAG

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A new study from South Korea suggests that the presence of migraines may be a possible risk factor for open angle glaucoma (OAG). Led by Hyung Jun Kim, MD, from the Department of Neurology, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine in Seoul, the study examined a 12-year nationwide cohort and found that patients who experience migraines showed a significantly increased risk of developing OAG. However, significant differences were not recorded between the study groups when assessing the presence of aura (migraine with aura: HR: 1.235; 95% CI: 1.137–1.342, P < 0.001; migraine without aura: HR: 1.248; 95% CI: 1.143–1.363, P < 0.001).¹

“Migraine with aura has been associated with vascular conditions, and some cardiovascular diseases have been specifically linked to migraine with aura,” the study authors reported. “In addition, migraine with aura has been consistently identified as an independent risk factor for ischemic stroke. Therefore, we hypothesized that OAG is more closely linked to migraine with aura; however, our results did not show a notable difference in the risk of developing OAG according to the aura status. Because there have been no previous studies regarding the association of migraine with OAG according to aura status, additional studies are necessary to confirm the findings of this study.”

The data for the study was collected from the Korean National health Insurance Service-National Sample Cohort database from 2002 to 2015 and included 1,103,302 patients, with 41,148 diagnosed with migraine between 2003 and 2008 and 2015 included in the migraine group, and 205,741 patients selected as controls through propensity score matching at a 1:5 ratio. Those experiencing migraines or OAG were ascertained based on the KCD code, and Multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate the hazard rate of OAG onset in the migraine group.¹

The data analysis indicated that incidence of OAG was significantly greater among patients with migraine than of those in the comparison group [hazard ratio (HR): 1.238; 95% CI: 1.160–1.132, P <0.001]. As for subgroup analyses, patients with migraine under 40 years old also had a greater hazard rate (HR: 1.576, 95% CI: 1.268–1.957) of developing OAG compared to patients with migraine, and over 40 year old patients (HR: 1.167, 95% CI: 1.089–1.250) when compared to corresponding non-migraine patients.¹

Study limitations included the data set being solely consisting of South Korean patients, detailed information regarding the characteristics of glaucoma being unable to be acquired, and a sensitivity analysis not being conducted that would verify the accuracy of the KCD code on glaucoma diagnoses, among others.¹

In conclusion, our study demonstrated that a history of migraine, irrespective of aura status, is associated with an increased risk of OAG onset,” the study authors stated. “Therefore, ocular examination for OAG may be necessary when migraine patients report symptoms of glaucoma, such as visual field defects.”

Reference:

1. Kim HJ, Ro JS, Lee SH, Moon JY, Lee SH. Association between migraine and open angle glaucoma: a 12-year nationwide retrospective Korean cohort study. Journal of Glaucoma. 2025;34(1):13-18. doi:10.1097/IJG.0000000000002507