Inflammatory Cytokine Signatures Are Associated With Disease Burden and Comorbidity of Episodic Migraine and Endometriosis

Maria Albanese, Veronica Ceci, Giulia Carrera, Aikaterini Selntigia, Caterina Exacoustos, C. Exacoustós, Marta Tiberi, Stefano Saracini, Alessandro Matteocci, Nicola Biagio Mercuri, Valerio Chiurchiù
Neurology(R) neuroimmunology & neuroinflammation · 2025 · vol. 12(6) , pp. e200490 · doi:10.1212/nxi.0000000000200490 · PMID:41043084 · W4414790387
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

This study found elevated inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α in women with episodic migraine, with further increases in those also having endometriosis, correlating with disease burden and suggesting a shared inflammatory endotype.

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Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to characterize inflammatory cytokine profiles in women diagnosed with episodic migraine, endometriosis, or both conditions and to determine how these cytokine patterns relate to symptom severity and functional impact, to identify potential biological markers distinguishing comorbid cases from single-diagnosis cases. METHODS: Female patients with only episodic migraine, only endometriosis, or both conditions were enrolled. Plasma levels of proinflammatory cytokines were measured, and correlations with clinical parameters were analyzed. RESULTS: Women with episodic migraine had elevated levels of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α compared with healthy controls, with even higher levels in those with both migraine and endometriosis, indicating a synergistic effect on systemic inflammation. IL-1β correlated with headache frequency and disability while IL-6 and TNF-α were linked to migraine severity and pain. Women with endometriosis alone did not show similar cytokine elevations, suggesting that inflammation is particularly amplified in comorbidity. Changes in leukocyte distribution further supported a unique immune activation profile in the comorbid group. DISCUSSION: These findings reveal novel biological evidence of a shared inflammatory endotype in women suffering from both conditions, which may contribute to the increased burden and comorbidity, highlighting the need for integrative diagnostic and management approaches.

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Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Cytokines Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis

Citation neighborhood (2-hop)

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. Outer rings show 2-hop neighbours — papers reached through the immediate citers/citees. [ collapse to 1-hop ]

References (15)

Cited by (1)

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