Instrumental Assessment and Pharmacological Treatment of Migraine-Related Vertigo in Pediatric Age

first_pagesettingsOrder Article Reprints Open AccessReview Instrumental Assessment and Pharmacological Treatment of Migraine-Related Vertigo in Pediatric Age by Pasquale Viola 1ORCID,Alfonso Scarpa 2,Giuseppe Chiarella 1,*ORCID,Davide Pisani 1,Alessia Astorina 1,Filippo Ricciardiello 3,Pietro De Luca 4,Massimo Re 5 andFederico Maria Gioacchini 5 1 Unit of Audiology, Regional Centre of Cochlear Implants and ENT Diseases, Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Magna Graecia University, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy 2 Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Salerno, 84084 Salerno, Italy 3 Ear, Nose, and Throat Unit, AORN Cardarelli, 80131 Napoli, Italy 4 Otolaryngology Department, San Giovanni-Addolorata Hospital, Via dell’Amba Aradam, 8, 00184 Rome, Italy 5 Ear, Nose, and Throat Unit, Department of Clinical and Molecular Sciences, Polytechnic University of Marche, Via Conca 71, 60020 Ancona, Italy * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Audiol. Res. 2024, 14(1), 129-138; https://doi.org/10.3390/audiolres14010011 Submission received: 21 November 2023 / Revised: 23 December 2023 / Accepted: 24 January 2024 / Published: 29 January 2024 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Episodic Vertigo: Differences, Overlappings, Opinion and Treatment) Downloadkeyboard_arrow_down Browse Figures Review Reports Versions Notes Abstract Background: The most frequent form of vertigo in pediatric age is represented by vertigo linked to migraine, with a prevalence of 32.7%. This group of pathologies has received a redefinition of the diagnostic criteria to adapt them to the pediatric age with a new classification of the clinical pictures. We have several kinds of problems with these conditions that often have a significant impact on patients’ and parents’ quality of life: the diagnostic approach involves different tools for the different age groups contained in the pediatric range; the treatment of this type of vertigo is not consolidated due to the limited availability of trials carried out on pediatric patients. Focusing on this topic, the aim of this review was to provide an update on the more recent clinical advances in the diagnosis and treatment of Vestibular Migraine (VM) in children. Methods: We searched the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane library databases for articles published in English from January 2015 to April 2023. The secondary search included articles from reference lists, identified by the primary search. Records were first screened by title/abstract, and then full-text articles were retrieved for eligibility evaluation. The searches combined a range of key terms (“Pediatric” AND “Childhood” AND “dizziness” OR “vertigo” AND “vestibular”). Results: Migraine-related vertigo, in its most recent definitions and classifications, is the most frequent group of balance pathologies in pediatric age. The results from the various experiences present in the literature suggest a clinical approach to be integrated with the use of instrumental tests selected according to the age of the patient and the reliability of the results. Conclusion: Knowing the timeline of the applicability of vestibular tests and the information that can be obtained from them is fundamental for diagnostic accuracy. Therapy is strongly conditioned by the limited availability of pediatric trials and by the wide range it includes, from very young children to adolescents.