More Migraine Info

[Guest guest]

12th Migraine Trust-DG Dispatch: Ulcer-Causing Bacteria Now Linked To

Migraine Headaches

LONDON, ENGLAND -- Sept. 8, 1998 -- The same bacteria that is known to

cause ulcers, helicobacter pylori, could also be associated with

migraine headaches, Italian researchers say.

H. pylori is also suspected of being associated with vascular disorders

causing coronary heart disease.

In a study of 37 people who experienced confirmed migraine headache

without aura, 54 percent tested positive for the bacteria. By

comparison, only 14 percent of the 117 controls had the bacteria. The

study was conducted at the University of Torino, Italy.

Men were less likely to harbour the bacteria than women (50 percent

versus 63 percent). However, women under the age of 40 who experienced

migraines showed the strongest likelihood of testing positive, with

fully two thirds of them harbouring the bacteria.

Dr. Lidia Pavi, an internist who studies migraines in Torino explained

that the study shows a link between headaches and the bacteria, but not

a true cause and effect. Further studies are needed to clarify the

connection, she said.

--Taking Drugs Early In Migraine Attack Most Effective, Researchers Say

Taking some of the most commonly-used treatments for migraine headache

-- sumatriptan, indomethicin and ergotamine -- as soon as possible after

the onset of symptoms seems to offer the best chance of relieving

migraine pain.

The efficacy of an oral dose of sumatriptan is reduced by 70 percent if

the dose is taken four hours after the onset of symptoms as compared

with when it is taken within one hour following the onset of symptoms.

The efficacy of a rectal suppository or sub-cutaneous/intramuscular

injections of indomethicin and ergotamine decreased by 30 percent when

taken four hours into the attack as compared with during the first hour.

Doctors speculate that at least part of this decrease in action stems

from the effect migraines have on the gastro-intestinal tract. The

digestive tract stops moving, in a process known as GI stasis, so the

drug may take longer to be absorbed once the attack is underway.

However, this is only part of the reason, they note, because the pattern

of delay, while not as significant, is still noticeable when the drug is

taken sub-cutaneously or through a rectal suppository.

--Epilepsy Drug Shown Effective For Treating Migraine

Sodium valproate, a drug used commonly to treat epilepsy, has been

proven effective in treating migraine headaches. In a study of 100

subjects who had had migraines for up to 40 years, a New Zealand

researcher found that valproate could reduce the frequency of migraine

attacks by as much as 70 per cent. Perhaps more important, the subjects

did not develop a tolerance to valproate, which they do for many

anti-migraine drugs - and many were able to continue using the drug for

a period of up to five years.

Patients who stopped taking valproate during the course of the study

quickly reverted to having as many migraine attacks as they did before

they enrolled in the study. They also stopped having migraine attacks

when they started taking valproate again.

Lyn

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and

conscientious stupidity.( Luther King)

http://home.talkcity.com/spiritcir/lynmari/index.html

And go to onelist.com and join rheumathritis and be an arthritis

warrior!!