Gender, migraine and affective disorders in the course of the life cycle

The relationships existing between migraine and affective disorders are still far from clear. Despite the evidence of a high prevalence, in association, of both conditions, many questions remain unanswered. To what extent is the coexistence of migraine and affective disorders, in particular depression, genetically determined? How important a role is played by pregnancy? What interactions occur between genetic and epigenetic factors? The authors analyse all these open questions and review the state of the art on this intriguing topic.