A Novel Approach to Metabolic Imaging of Migraine and Post Traumatic Headache Using Full Brain 3D-MRSI

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy provides a means to quantify brain metabolites. Metabolites of interest are N-acetyl aspartate (NAA, neuronal marker), Choline (Cho, marker of cell membrane turnover), Myoinositol (Ins, astrocyte marker), Glutamate+Glutamine (Glx, neurotransmitters). Studies demonstrate metabolic changes associated with migraine such as increased Glx levels (signifying excitotoxicity), decreased NAA (suggestive of neuronal damage), as well as abnormal GABA in pain processing areas. The main goal of this work was to use using a novel, whole-brain three-dimensional magnetic resonance spectroscopy imaging (MRSI) technique to collect preliminary data on metabolic differences between migraine, post traumatic headache (PTH), and healthy controls.