Migraines

Office staff who took part in an eight-month workplace initiative reported that headaches and neck and shoulder pain fell by more than 40 per cent and their use of painkillers halved, according to research published in the May issue of Cephalalgia. They also reported that pain levels were less severe at the end of the study than at the start.

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If you’re one of the nearly 30 million Americans* who suffers from migraine headaches, you now have a new way to fight them. This month, a new drug is expected to land in pharmacies that combines two existing migraine drugs. Most days, Richard Higgins is very active. If he’s not training for triathlons, he’s doing karate with his kids. The only thing that seems to slow him down is his migraine headaches.

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ROXRO PHARMA, Inc. announced positive top-line data from a clinical study of the company’s novel investigational intranasal pain reliever in the treatment of migraine and related symptoms. The placebo-controlled proof of concept study evaluated the efficacy and safety of ROX-828, an intranasal formulation of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) pain reliever ketorolac.

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“Migraine hurts skin” is the headline in the Daily Mirror. The newspaper describes the symptom of sensitive skin, called allodynia, where sufferers of migraine find combing their hair, wearing jewellery or getting dressed “excruciatingly painful”. The newspaper reports that 10% of people in the UK suffer migraine. The Daily Telegraph covers the same story and suggests “two thirds of migraine sufferers reported symptoms of the condition allodynia”.

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People with migraine are more likely to experience exacerbated skin sensitivity or pain after non-painful daily activities such as rubbing one’s head, combing one’s hair and wearing necklaces or earrings, compared to people with other types of headache, according to a study published in the April 22, 2008, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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In a new study, published in the American Journal of Human Genetics, researchers were able for the first time to convincingly demonstrate a genomic locus to be linked to migraine susceptibility in two diverse populations. Migraine is the most common cause of episodic headache, and by far the most common neurological cause of a doctor’s visit.

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GlaxoSmithKline (LSE & NYSE: GSK) and POZEN Inc. (NASDAQ: POZN) announced that the FDA has approved Treximet for the acute treatment of migraine attacks with or without aura in adults. Treximet is the first and only migraine product designed to target multiple mechanisms of migraine by combining a triptan, a class of migraine-specific medicines pioneered by GSK, and an anti-inflammatory pain reliever in a single tablet.

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Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted tentative approval for the Company’s Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) to market its generic version of Merck’s migraine pain treatment Maxalt® (Rizatriptan Benzoate) Tablets, equivalent to 5 mg and 10 mg base. Final approval of this product is anticipated upon expiration of patent protection for the brand product in June 2012.

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People who overuse barbiturates and opioids, such as codeine, butalbital, and oxycodone, to treat migraine are at an increased risk of developing chronic migraine, according to research that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 12 - 19, 2008.People with chronic migraine have headaches on 15 or more days a month.

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New research shows women who have weekly migraine are significantly more likely to have a stroke than those with fewer migraines or no migraine at all, but those with lower migraine frequency may face increased risk of heart attacks. The research will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 12 - 19, 2008.The Women’s Health Study involved 27,798 women health professionals in the United States who were 45 and older.

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