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Fitzek MP, Mecklenburg J, Overeem LH, Lange KS, Siebert A, Triller P, Neeb L, Dreier JP, Kondziella D, Reuter U, Raffaelli B. Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS): prevalence and characteristics in adults with migraine. J Neurol 2024; 271:5146-5155. [PMID: 38822148 PMCID: PMC11319383 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-024-12471-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2024] [Revised: 05/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 06/02/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS) is a sensory disorder characterized by a distorted somatosensory and/or visual perception. Additionally, distortion of time perception and symptoms of derealization/depersonalization may occur. AIWS is frequently associated with migraine. However, its prevalence, and clinical characteristics remain poorly understood. Here, we investigated the prevalence and features of AIWS in individuals with migraine. We hypothesized AIWS is more frequent in migraine patients with aura than in those without aura. METHODS This was a prospective cross-sectional cohort study, conducted at a tertiary headache center. Participants with migraine filled out questionnaires, providing details on demographics, headache, AIWS characteristics and the occurrence of transient visual phenomena such as fragmented vision. RESULTS Of 808 migraine patients, 133 individuals (16.5%, mean age 44.4 ± 13.3 years, 87% women) reported AIWS symptoms throughout their lives. Micro- and/or telopsia (72.9%) were most frequent, followed by micro- and/or macrosomatognosia (49.6%), and macro- and/or pelopsia (38.3%), lasting on average half an hour. AIWS symptoms occurred in association with headache in 65.1% of individuals, and 53.7% had their first AIWS episode at the age of 18 years or earlier. Migraine patients with aura were more likely to report AIWS symptoms than those without aura (19.5% vs. 14.1%, p = 0.04). Participants with AIWS reported a higher incidence of 17 out of the 22 investigated visual phenomena. CONCLUSION AIWS symptoms appear to be a common lifetime phenomenon in migraine patients. The correlation and clinical parallels between AIWS and migraine aura could indicate shared underlying pathomechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mira P Fitzek
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Junior Clinician Scientist Program, Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH), Berlin, Germany
| | - Jasper Mecklenburg
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lucas H Overeem
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - Kristin S Lange
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Clinician Scientist Program, Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH), Berlin, Germany
| | - Anke Siebert
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - Paul Triller
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lars Neeb
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Helios Global Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jens P Dreier
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Center for Stroke Research, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, GermanyUniversitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Experimental Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Einstein Center for Neurosciences Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Daniel Kondziella
- Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Uwe Reuter
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Bianca Raffaelli
- Department of Neurology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.
- Clinician Scientist Program, Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH), Berlin, Germany.
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