What has imaging taught us about migraine?

Migraine affects about 15 percent of the population; it is ranked number 12 amongst women and 19 in the general population for the degree of handicap it causes, according to the World Health Organization. Migraine is a complex and often disabling brain disorder. It has internationally agreed diagnostic clinical criteria but they are somewhat subjective and arbitrary. Functional imaging studies have the potential to advance our understanding of the underlying migraine mechanism and that of other headache disorders. This article reviews the pivotal neuroimaging studies in migraine that have advanced the field.