Cyproheptadine versus propranolol in the prevention of migraine headaches in children

Objective: There are conflicting results on the efficacy of propranolol and cyproheptadine in the prevention of migraine headaches in children. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated the efficacy of propranolol versus cyproheptadine in the prevention of migraine headaches. Methodology: This was a randomized, double-blind trial. Sixty children aged 8-15 yrs with migraine headaches were randomized to be treated with either propranolol (40-80 mg per day) or cyproheptadine (8-12 mg per day) for 4 weeks. The patients were requested to record the Severity and duration of their headaches during a 2-week period before starting the intervention. The patients were followed at 2-week intervals for a period of 1 month after starting treatment. The headache diary was analyzed for each patient and was compared with baseline using SPSS software and statistical tests including the student's t-test. Results: Out of 60 patients at baseline, nine patients in the cyproheptadine group and six patients in the propranolol group did not appear at the appropriate time for follow-up visits and therefore were excluded from the study. The mean age in the cyproheptadine group was 11.9+-2.23 years and in the propranolol group was 0.7 +- 2.33 years. Based on the diaries, the results Showed that propranolol and cyproheptadine decreased headaches by 54.61% and 70.53% (p < 0.05), respectively, at the end of four weeks of treatment. Conclusion: Overall, the results of our study suggest that cyproheptadine is a good choice for prevention of migraine headache in pediatric group although more prolonged study with higher number of the patient is recommended. (author)