PO-61 | Social cognition in interictal episodic and chronic migraine: a cross-sectional study

Chiara Abbatantuono,^1* Delussi Marianna,^2* Clemente Livio,¹ Giulia Paparella,¹ Stefania Scannicchio,¹ Annalisa Di Dio,¹ Elena Ammendola,¹ Giusy Tancredi,¹ Emmanuella Ladisa,¹ Giulia Paparella,^1,3 Marina de Tommaso¹ (*Equally Contributed) | ¹Neurophysiopathology Unit, Department of Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience (DiBraiN), University of Bari Aldo Moro (IT), Bari, Italy; ²Department of Education, Psychology, Communication (For.Psi.Com.), University of Bari Aldo Moro (IT), Bari, Italy; ³IRCCS Neuromed Pozzilli (IS), Italy

Background: Migraine is a complex neurological disorder associated with both sensory dysfunction and higher-order cognitive and emotional processes (Buse et al., 2020). Emerging evidence suggests a potential impact on social cognition (SC) - the capacity to understand and respond to others’ emotions and intentions (Poletti et al., 2012). Preliminary studies showed altered empathy and emotion recognition, especially in chronic migraine (CM) or patients with symptomatics overuse (Giffin et al., 2022; Grazzi et al., 2020). However, most research has focused on general cognition or the ictal phase. Very few have investigated SC during the interictal phase, when baseline functioning may be more reliably assessed (Rocca et al., 2014). This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the relationship between SC indices and episodic (EM) and chronic migraine (CM) features during the interictal phase.

Methods: Sixty patients (CM=30, EM=30; women=46; mean age≈45) compliant with ICD criteria were recruited at the Neurophysiopathology Unit, Bari General Hospital (May 2024–May 2025). Clinical assessments included disease duration, monthly attack frequency, pain intensity (NRS), disability (MIDAS), and allodynia. SC was assessed via the Ekman 60 Faces Test, FACES, and SET. Correlational and regression analyses were performed on the full sample and stratified by gender and diagnosis (p<0.05).

Results: No significant associations, nor trends, emerged between SC and clinical variables in the overall sample, nor within gender- or diagnosis-based subgroups. Regression models failed to identify predictive effects.

Conclusion: SC appears preserved during the interictal phase across migraine frequencies, also considering migraine severity. Follow-up studies during ictal phase may clarify whether pain modulates SC performance.