Migraine and Migraine-Related News from the AAN: American Academy of Neurology Meeting

The AAN: American Academy of Neurology is currently holding their annual meeting. Although the meeting does not until tomorrow, May 2, here's news they have already released.

Preventive Drugs Reduce Severity of Menstrual Migraine
SEATTLE, April 29 -- Preventive eletriptan (Relpax) and sumatriptan (Imitrex) may reduce the severity and duration of menstrual migraine, researchers here said....
To read the entire article click HERE.

Stroke Risk Cut 65% in Patients Who Hit Major Risk Factor Targets
SEATTLE, April 29 -- Patients who meet guideline targets for "good" and "bad" cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure can expect a 65% reduction in stroke risk, according to research presented here....
To read the entire article click HERE.

Glutamate Receptor Inhibitors May Help Migraine
SEATTLE, April 30 -- Inhibition of glutamate receptors may play a role in migraine treatment, researchers here said...
To read the entire article click HERE.

Epilepsy Drug Not Effective for Chronic Headache
SEATTLE, April 30 -- The epilepsy drug levetiracetam (Keppra) does not appear to be effective for prevention of chronic daily headache, researchers said here...
To read the entire article click HERE.

UPDATE: Getting the Correct Information on Migraine Drug Treximet

The comments I made to the The Real Cougar Woman in reference to the misinformation in the article Migraine Sufferers - This New Drug Might Help You are now showing. I don't know if they were removed intentionally or if it was just one of those "things" that sometimes happens in cyberspace.

I was hoping that because my comments weren't there, the article might be corrected. But noooooo, the article remains the same. Wait, something has been fixed. It's so small that I almost missed it. The last sentence no longer says:

If you are a migraine sufferer ask your doctor if treximent is for you.

Now it says:

If you are a migraine sufferer ask your doctor if treximet is for you.

The spelling of the word "treximent" has now been corrected to "treximet". YIPPEE!

One down, a bunch to go...

This updates my previous blog entry Getting the Correct Information on Migraine Drug Treximet

Getting the Correct Information on Migraine Drug Treximet

I was just over at Migraine News Network reading Raingem's interesting article, "Treximet or TrickThem-et?" She provides us with good information about this new Migraine medication and points us to something:

Debbie who runs Down The Rabbit Hole blog:, has noticed something interesting - a little subversive disinformation campaign as propagated by sloppy journalists and uninformed patients alike. There are plenty of little news blips if you care to search for them that say pretty much the same as this little article: New Drug Could Be Best Migraine Medicine On Market.

I find all this ironic. Two days ago I was reading Migraine news. It seemed that article after article was bullshit, misinformation, unreliable and lies. So when I stumbled on this Treximet article Migraine Sufferers - This New Drug Might Help You on The Real Cougar Woman I started to get mad. This article was filled with inaccurate and misleading information and I couldn't take it anymore, So I did something I usually don't do. I wrote a letter to the author, pointed out the incorrect information and provided her with the correct information. I told her that she didn't have to post my comments but I would like her to fix the stuff that was wrong. She ended up posting my comments instead.

You can read them below or read them in context on The Real Cougar Woman. Since my comments were removed two days after being approved, here's part of the article including the incorrect information in red:

...This month, a new drug is expected to land in pharmacies that combines two existing migraine drugs. It promises to offer relief without the fear of addiction. It's called treximet.

Apparently it works by combining two existing drugs that control two different aspects of migraine headaches. First, it prevents blood vessels in the head from narrowing. Second, it blocks the brain from releasing chemicals that signal pain.

If you are a migraine sufferer ask your doctor if treximent is for you.

My comments in their entirety follows:

Treximet is NOT the combination of two existing Migraine drugs. It combines a Migraine medication with an NSAID. The Migraine medication, Sumatriptan, is a Triptan (technical name is selective serotonin receptor agonists), and is the ingredient found in Imitrex. The NSAID is naproxen sodium, the same ingredient found in the over-the-counter medicine Aleve. This is used for many other conditions. You say "It promises to offer relief without the fear of addiction". Even though it's not very common, NSAID addiction can occur. Additionally, using these products separately and/or together can cause a serious condition for Migraine sufferers called Medication Overuse Headache also known as Rebound Headaches.

I know that all medications including vitamins and supplements have side effects but your article makes it sound as if there are no risks associated with using this medication. Yes, there are benefits of both medications but it should be noted that NSAIDs can be FATAL. It increases heart attack and stroke risk and can be harmful to the liver, kidneys and stomach. NSAIDs can also cause ulcers, bleeding, perforation and other gastrointestinal effects.

You're incorrect to say that this medication prevents blood vessels in the head from narrowing. Treximet does NOT prevent blood vessels in the head from narrowing. During a Migraine attack the blood vessels in the head DILATE. Sumatriptan causes vasoconstriction. This means that this medication does the exact opposite of what you said it does and constricts, or narrows, the blood vessels. You can verify this information on MAGNUM, the same site you cited http://www.migraines.org/treatment/treathis.htm

Treximet is misspelled "treximent" in the last sentence.

Using the phrase "Migraine Headache" is also inaccurate. Migraine is a genetic neurological disease. Migraines are NOT headaches. Headache is just one symptom of a Migraine and there are many other symptoms such as, aura, nausea, vomiting, photophobia, phonophobia and vertigo. Some people don't have headaches during a Migraine attack so calling it a "Migraine Headache" is misleading.

I'm not asking you to publish my comment, I'd just like you to fix the misinformation.
Pam
http://pinkpurlgurl.blogspot.com

Migraine at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago

Here's a synopsis of Migraine research that was presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago April 12–19, 2008.

Migraine frequency linked with women's risk of cardiovascular disease
CHICAGO – 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 was presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 12–19, 2008...
To read the entire article click HERE.

Children with migraine at increased risk of sleep disturbances
CHICAGO – Children with migraine are more likely to have sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea and lack of sleep, than children without migraine, according to research on the effects of headaches on children’s sleep patterns was presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 12–19, 2008...
To read the entire article click HERE.

Overuse of codeine, oxycodone and barbiturates increases risk of chronic migraine
CHICAGO – 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 was 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...
To read the entire article click HERE.

New Hope for Migraine Sufferers: Optinose Nasal Delivery of Sumatriptan Proves as Effective as Invasive Subcutantaneous Injection
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--At the American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting, Optinose, the Norwegian drug delivery specialists, today presented Phase I data that could lead to faster, effective and less invasive relief for migraine sufferers. The recently completed trial first demonstrated that Sumatriptan powder delivered intranasally using OptiNose’s 2nd generation device has a rapid onset of action and is as effective as subcutaneously administered Sumatriptan in preventing GTN Challenge Induced EEG changes in migraine sufferers...
To read the entire article click HERE.

For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit www.aan.com.