A preliminary study suggests the same type of botulinum
injection used for cosmetic purposes may be associated with reduced
frequency of migraine headaches that are described as crushing, vicelike
or eye-popping (ocular), but not pain that is experienced as a buildup
of pressure inside the head, according to a report in the February issue
ofArchives of Dermatology.
Migraine headaches affect
approximately 28 million Americans, causing pain that is often
debilitating, according to background information in the article.
Researchers conducting clinical trials on botulinum
toxin type A to treat facial lines recognized a correlation between
injections and the alleviation ofmigraine symptoms.
"The initial promise of a new prophylactic [preventive] therapy for
migraines was met by the challenge of replication of these results," as
subsequent studies have failed to demonstrate botulinum was more
effective than placebo, the authors write. "Researchers have searched
for patient characteristics that may predict a favorable treatment
response."
Christine C. Kim, M.D., then
of SkinCare Physicians, Chestnut Hill, Mass., and now in private
practice in Encino, Calif., and colleagues studied 18 patients (average
age 50.9) who had already received or were planning to receive botulinum
injections for cosmetic purposes but also reported having migraines. Of
those, 10 reported imploding headaches—described by adjectives like
crushing and vice-like—or ocular headaches, reported to feel like an eye
is popping out or that someone is pushing a finger into an eye. Nine
patients had exploding headaches, described as feeling like one's head
is going to explode or split, or that pressure is building up. Some
patients had more than one type.
Three months after treatment,
13 patients had responded to the treatment with a reduction in migraine
pain, including 10 who had imploding or ocular headaches and three who
had exploding headaches. All six of the patients who did not respond had
exploding headaches.
Among all participants who
responded to treatment, migraine frequency was reduced from an average
of 6.8 days per month to an average of 0.7 days per month. Patients with
exploding headaches experienced an average reduction in migraine
frequency of 11.4 to 9.4 days per month, whereas frequency in
participants with imploding or ocular headaches reduced from an average
of 7.1 days per month to 0.6 days per month.
Botulinum produces muscle
paralysis, but this alone does not explain how it may prevent migraine
pain, the authors note. Research indicates that it may affect the way
pain signals travel through the nervous system, block pain receptors or
reduce inflammation.
"These preliminary data are
intriguing, and our results provide support for the hypothesis that
patients with migraine that is characterized by imploding and ocular
headaches are more responsive to botulinum toxin type A than those with
migraine characterized by exploding headaches," the authors write. "Our
findings invite consideration of using botulinum toxin type A injections
to prevent migraine headaches and may promote the role of the
dermatologist in the treatment of patients with migraine. However,
well-controlled trials need to be conducted to confirm these findings."