Visual evoked potentials: A diagnostic test for migraine headache in children

Visual evoked potentials (VEPs) were performed in a blind fashion in 114 children aged 3 to 17 years with different types of headaches, in order to investigate whether this could be helpful in the diagnosis of migraine versus other types of headaches in children, The study showed that the amplitude between P₁₀₀ and N₂ was significantly larger in children with migraine headaches (mean 19.8 μvol, SD 7.75) compared with other types of headaches (mean 13.1 μvol, SD 7.45). These results suggest that the sensitivity of VEP P₁₀₀ amplitude to distinguish migraine headaches in children is 67%, the specificity of VEP is 83%, and the predictive positive value is 83%. VEP study might be helpful in workup of a child with headache, particularly a young child, when signs and symptoms may not be characteristic.