How migraine and its associated treatment impact on pregnancy outcomes: Umbrella review with updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Migraine is common in reproductive aged women. Understanding the impact of migraine and associated treatments on pregnancy outcomes remains very important. An umbrella review of systematic reviews, with or without meta-analyses, examined the link between migraine and pregnancy outcomes. Methods: We systematically searched Medline, Embase and Cochrane to 27 October 2022. Quality appraisal was carried out using the AMSTAR2 tool. An established framework was used to determine whether included reviews were eligible for update. Results: Four studies met review criteria. Migraine was reported to be associated with increased odds ratio (OR) of pre-eclampsia, low birth weight and peripartum mental illness (pooled OR = 3.54 (2.24–5.59)). Triptan-exposed women had increased odds of miscarriage compared to women without migraine (pooled OR = 3.54 (2.24–5.59)). In updated meta-analyses, migraine was associated with an increased odds of pre-eclampsia and preterm birth (pooled OR = 2.05 (1.47–2.84) and 1.26 (1.21–1.32) respectively). Conclusions: Migraine is associated with increased odds of pre-eclampsia, peripartum mental illness and preterm birth. Further investigation of the relationship between migraine and placental abruption, low birth weight and small for gestational age is warranted, as well as the relationship between migraine, triptans and miscarriage risk. Systematic Review Registration: Prospero CRD42022357630.