December 23, 2024

Don’t Use Ibuprofen for Migraines – New Study Reveals Much More Effective Medications

Different dosages of medication and formulas of each medication were integrated in this analysis.The research study discovered that the leading 3 classes of medications more efficient than ibuprofen were anti-emetics, ergots, and triptans.”For individuals whose severe migraine medication is not working for them, our hope is that this research study shows that there are lots of alternatives that work for migraine, and we motivate people to talk with their doctors about how to treat this painful and incapacitating condition,” stated Chiang.A limitation of the research study was examinations of medications might be affected by a users expectations of the dose or the medication they took. Another limitation was that more recent migraine gepants, medications, and ditans, were not included in the research study due to the low amount of data when the research study was carried out and lack of accessibility in numerous countries.Reference: “Simultaneous Comparisons of 25 Acute Migraine Medications Based on 10 Million Users Self-Reported Records From a Smartphone Application” by Chia-Chun Chiang, Xuemin Fang, Zsolt Horvath, Francois Cadiou, Alexandre Urani, Weijie Poh, Hiroto Narimatsu, Yu Cheng and David W. Dodick, 12 December 2023, Neurology.DOI: 10.1212/ WNL.0000000000207964 The study was supported by the Kanagawa University of Human Services.

A detailed study reveals that anti-emetics, ergots, and triptans are notably more reliable than ibuprofen for treating migraines. Examining information from numerous thousands of app users, the study highlights the remarkable efficacy of medications like eletriptan and zolmitriptan, using new guidance for migraine treatment.Many people experiencing migraines struggle to discover treatments that work consistently, and frequently theres an absence of relative details on different medications. A new research study, utilizing data from about 300,000 people through a smart device app, aims to assist in making notified decisions about migraine medications.This research study, released in Neurology, the journal of the American Academy of Neurology, exposes that certain medications for migraines, such as triptans, anti-emetics, and ergots, may be considerably more effective– varying from two to five times– than ibuprofen in handling migraine attacks.Migraine Characteristics and Treatment ChallengesMigraine attacks are characterized by intense throbbing head discomfort, sensitivity to light and vomiting, nausea, or sound. Previous research has actually shown migraine can also be connected with cognitive problems. All of these signs might impact an individuals quality of life and performance.”There are numerous treatment choices readily available to those with migraine. There is a lack of head-to-head contrasts of the effectiveness of these treatment alternatives,” said study author Chia-Chun Chiang, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and member of the American Academy of Neurology. “These outcomes verify that triptans should be considered previously for treating migraine, instead of booking their use for serious attacks.”Study Methodology and FindingsFor the research study, researchers consisted of over 3 million migraine attacks from almost 300,000 users that were self-reported by people using a mobile phone app during a six-year period. The app permits users to keep track of the frequency of migraine attacks, triggers, symptoms and medication effectiveness.For those migraine attacks, individuals entered 4.7 million treatment efforts with various medications into the app. They taped in the app whether a medication was valuable or not. Researchers then utilized that information to calculate the efficiency of each drug compared to ibuprofen.Researchers took a look at an overall of 25 medications amongst seven drug classes. Various does of medication and solutions of each medication were integrated in this analysis.The research study found that the top 3 classes of medications more reliable than ibuprofen were triptans, anti-emetics, and ergots. Triptans were 5 times more efficient than ibuprofen, ergots were three times more reliable and anti-emetics were 2 and a half times more effective.When taking a look at specific medications, the top three were eletriptan which was 6 times more effective than ibuprofen, zolmitriptan which was five and a half times more effective and sumatriptan which was 5 times more effective.Researchers found that when using eletriptan, participants discovered it handy 78% of the time. Zolmitriptan was helpful 74% of the time and sumatriptan was valuable 72% of the time. Ibuprofen was useful 42% of the time.Researchers also took a look at other groups of medication such as acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs aside from ibuprofen were 94% more effective than ibuprofen.Participants found ketorolac useful 62% of the time, indomethacin was practical 57% of the time, and diclofenac was practical 56% of the time. Acetaminophen was valuable 37% of the time and found to be 17% less efficient than ibuprofen when utilized for treating migraines.Additionally, a common combination of medications used to treat migraine, acetaminophen, caffeine, and aspirin was also examined and found to be 69% more effective than ibuprofen.”For individuals whose severe migraine medication is not working for them, our hope is that this research study reveals that there are many options that work for migraine, and we encourage individuals to talk with their doctors about how to treat this agonizing and incapacitating condition,” said Chiang.A limitation of the research study was assessments of medications could be influenced by a users expectations of the medication or the dosage they took. Another restriction was that more recent migraine ditans, medications, and gepants, were not included in the research study due to the low quantity of information when the study was conducted and lack of accessibility in lots of countries.Reference: “Simultaneous Comparisons of 25 Acute Migraine Medications Based on 10 Million Users Self-Reported Records From a Smartphone Application” by Chia-Chun Chiang, Xuemin Fang, Zsolt Horvath, Francois Cadiou, Alexandre Urani, Weijie Poh, Hiroto Narimatsu, Yu Cheng and David W. Dodick, 12 December 2023, Neurology.DOI: 10.1212/ WNL.0000000000207964 The study was supported by the Kanagawa University of Human Services.