Serotonin function and gender effects in migraine production and OCD

A high prevalence of comorbidity has been reported between migraines and psychiatric disorders. It has been proposed that migraine headaches are mediated by stimulation of serotonin (5-HT) receptors. Past studies have demonstrated that migraine-like headaches have been produced following administration of the partial 5-HT agonist m-chlorophenylpiperazine (m-CPP; believed to primarily affect the 5-HT2C receptor) in patients with migraines or eating disorders, especially bulimia, as well as in normal controls. We review the association between 5-HT dysfunction, as determined by response to m-CPP challenge, and migraines, looking specifically at the relationship between migraines and obsessive-compulsive disorder and gender effects.