Memantine Ameliorates Migraine Headache

Background and Objective: A significant number of migraine patients do not find effective and safe treatment to reduce the frequency and severity of their migraine attacks. Hence, a need for newer therapeutic agent exists. In this study, we examined the efficacy and safety of memantine for the treatment of migraine. Materials and Methods: It was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study including adult patients with 3-12 migraine headache for the last 6 months conducted in India. Patients received memantine (10 mg/day, once a day) or placebo for the period of 24 weeks after a washout period. Migraine frequency per month, the 50% responder rate, rescue medication use, and adverse events were recorded every 4 weeks. Results: Among 81 patients screened, 60 were enrolled for the study. Thirty patients received memantine and other 30 received placebo. Data were analyzed for 28 patients in memantine group and 29 patients in placebo group. At the baseline, all the parameters were similar in both groups. By 24 weeks, migraine frequency/4 weeks was memantine group versus placebo; 2.57 (+/- 0.38) versus 5.07 (+/- 0.69), P = 0.003 and rescue medication use was 0.75 (+/- 0.23) versus 3.72 (+/- 0.63) P = 0.0001. The 50% responder rate was 85.7% versus 51.7% (P = 0.005). Only a few mild adverse events were recorded in both the groups. No severe adverse events and death were recorded during the study. Conclusion: Memantine (10 mg oral, once daily) is effective, well tolerated, and safe for patients with migraine.