Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Clinical Trial
Abstract: Background & Objective: Migraine is a common neurological disorder affecting one billion people worldwide, causing disability, reduced quality of life, and high economic costs.Medical treatments have often limited efficacy and side effects.Non-pharmacological options such as trigeminal nerve stimulation with devices such as Cefaly® offer alternatives.This study assesses effectiveness of Cefaly®'s in reducing uncontrolled migraine symptoms alongside standard medications. Materials & Methods:This study included 20 patients with migraine, with or without aura, intractable to conventional treatments.Participants used the Cefaly® device in addition to regular medication for external trigeminal nerve stimulation on the forehead.Migraine frequency, severity, and duration were assessed over one month using pre-and post-intervention questionnaires, with data analyzed by nonparametric methods due to the small sample size.Results: The proportion of participants experiencing severe attacks dropped from 45% to 15% (P = 0.037).The frequency of attacks was reduced, with the percentage of participants having 3-5 attacks per month falling from 75% to 45%, and those with more than 5 attacks per month declining to 0% (P = 0.038).Attack duration also decreased, with a reduction in attacks lasting 12-24 hours from 35% to 20%, and those lasting more than 24 hours from 45% to 15% (P = 0.002).Conclusion: Cefaly® could effectively reduce the severity, frequency, and duration of headaches in patients who do not respond conventional treatments, suggesting it as a promising non-pharmacological option.Further research with larger samples and longer follow-up is needed to confirm these findings and assess long-term efficacy.
Institution: Zanjan University of Medical Sciences
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4409798856