Nur Amalina Md Isa

Research Title: The ocular surface in migraine

Supervisors: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Maria Markoulli, Prof. Eric Papas, Dr. Katherine Spira, Prof. Arun Krishnan, Assoc. Prof. Alessandro S. Zagami

Research Abstract: Migraine is a common and debilitating neurological disorder that is affecting approximately 14% of the global population. It is usually characterised by 4-72 hours, moderate-to-severe, unilateral headache; with spectrum of associated symptoms involving sensory, visual, cognitive and motor disturbances. Despite the prevalence and significant impact to the quality of life, there are still many uncertainties relating to what triggers migraine and how it occurs (pathophysiology). These result to assessing and treating the disorder challenging. Currently, migraine is mainly evaluated through patient-reported measures, which could prone to recall bias.
Migraine presents many eye-related symptoms such as photophobia, disturbed vision, visual aura, and ocular pain. Recent findings also showed prevalent comorbidity of dry eyes and elevated levels of key neuropeptide of migraine pain in the tear film compared to serum in those with migraine. These findings suggest possible crosstalk between migraine and the eyes. Hence, this research focuses on investigating the relationship between them.
We aim to explore the influence of migraine on the eye, particularly the ocular surface, and vice-versa. We hope this research could provide deeper understanding on migraine pathophysiology and its connections to the eyes and enlighten the potential of the ocular surface in evaluating migraine disorder.

Education:
(1) PhD Candidate, UNSW (2022 – current).
(2) Master of Optometry, UNSW.
(3) Bachelor of Optometry (Honours), International Islamic University Malaysia.