ABSTRACT
AIM: To evaluate the rationale for different approaches to preventive chronic migraine (CM) treatment by comparing clinical outcomes and financial burden of the disease in the real-world practice. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty-six patients with CM were enrolled at the Alexander Vein Headache Clinic (60 women and 6 men, aged 28-51). All patients were divided into 3 groups: group 1 (n=22) received oral preventative treatment with topiramate, up to 100 mg daily, for three months; group 2 (n=20) received 12 acupuncture sessions (3 sessions a week); group 3 (n=24) received 155-195 units of botulinum toxin type A (botox, BTA). The follow-up period in all groups was 3 months. Efficacy was evaluated by clinical examination, the Headache Impact Test (HIT-6) and questionnaires to assess subjective patient satisfaction and treatment tolerability. RESULTS: BTA demonstrated the highest efficacy in this study. Compared to the oral preventative treatment and acupuncture, BTA reduced the frequency of headache faster and more significantly facilitating CM transformation into episodic migraine (headache frequency was 16.1±0.1; 18.0±0.02; and 13.9±0.3 in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively, after one month of treatment). BTA also improved the quality of life faster and more significantly and was better tolerated (good - 51%, 75% and 85% in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively; satisfactory - 35%, 25% and 15% in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively; bad 14% in the oral prevention group). In the BTA group, the majority of patients demonstrated earlier treatment satisfaction. Despite higher (compared to topiramate) direct costs in the BTA group (RUB 29 931.51 and RUB 32 085.87, respectively), the predicted cost of a headache-free day was the smallest and totaled RUB 652.15 (compared to RUB 692.86 and RUB 1017.60 in the topiramate and acupuncture groups, respectively). CONCLUSION: The data on the efficacy and costs of different CM prevention strategies would facilitate optimal treatment choice for neurologists and patients.
