A product that combines extracts of Tanacetum parthenium, commonly known as feverfew, with Salix alba, also called white willow, appears to be effective in reducing the frequency, severity and duration of migraine attacks, according to the results of a small study reported by a research team based in France.
The herbal combination goes by the commercial name of Mig-RL and is marketed by Naturveda-VitroBio Research Institute, the French company that sponsored the study. Recent reports have suggested that these products affect some of the same cell targets as conventional medications do.
In the study, reported in the Journal Clinical Drug Investigation, Dr. R. Shrivastava, from Issoire, and colleagues enrolled 12 patients with migraine who were treated with Mig-RL for 12 weeks. Two Mig-RL capsules were given twice daily. Two patients dropped out of the study - one had almost continuous headache and was referred for neurologic evaluation, the other refused to comply with the study protocol.
Migraine frequency was reduced by 57.2 percent at 6 weeks and by 61.7 percent at 12 weeks in 9 of 10 patients. Seventy percent of the patients experienced a 50 percent or greater reduction in headache frequency.
Reductions in attack intensity of 38.7 and 62.6 percent were noted in 10 of 10 patients at 6 and 12 weeks, respectively. Similarly, treatment with Mig-RL led to significant reductions in attack duration.
Mig-RL therapy was also tied to improvements in quality of life and the medicine was well tolerated and not associated with any side effects.
The encouraging results suggest that a larger, placebo-controlled randomized trial of Mig-RL is warranted, the authors conclude.
SOURCE: Clinical Drug Investigation, May 2006.
传统药物联合使用对治疗偏头痛有益
法国的一个研究小组报道，一种源于植物Tanacetum parthenium（通常称之为艾菊）和Salix alba（也称作白柳）的提取物复合制剂，可有效地减少偏头痛的发作频率、减轻发作程度以及缩短发作持续时间。
这个草药复合制剂的流通商品名为Mig-RL，已经被Naturveda-VitroBio研究所注册并受到法国一家公司的资助。
据临床药物研究杂志报道，来自伊索尔的博士R. Shrivastava和他的同事们共选取12名偏头痛患者参与了该研究，对他们施以Mig-RL治疗12个星期。患者每日服用Mig-RL胶囊两次，每次两粒。有两名患者退出研究，其中一位因为持续性头痛被转至神经科治疗，另一位因为不服从研究组管理而被辞退。
在剩下的这十位患者当中，经过连续6星期的药物治疗，有九人偏头痛的发作频率降低了57.2％；通过12星期的治疗，其发作频率降低了61.7％。有70％的病人感觉到偏头痛发作的频率减少了50％或更大程度。
这十名患者偏头痛的发作强度也有显著减弱，通过6周和12周的药物治疗后，分别减轻了38.7％和62.6％。研究小组也得到类似的结果，服用Mig-RL后患者偏头痛发作的持续时间也有明显缩短。
Mig-RL对偏头痛的治疗也能够改善病人生活质量，且不易耐药，没有任何毒副作用。
作者认为，这个鼓舞人心的试验结果表明，进行一次大规模的Mig-RL随机对照试验是必要的。
文章来自：临床药物研究，2006年5月
编者按：本文由丁香园网友快乐桃花岛翻译。
编辑：西门吹血
