Migraine

Migraine sufferers who want to know more about patent foramen ovale (PFO) and a possible connection to Migraine should be interested in the results of the MIST (Migraine Intervention with STARFlex® Technology) study. MIST was the British double-blind study designed to evaluate the effect of PFO (patent foramen ovale) closure on Migraine. (See: PFO and Migraine -: "Hole in the Heart and Migraine?.)

Doctors Peter Wilmshurst and Andrew Dowson, co-primary investigators of MIST, jointly presented the results on March 13, 2006, at the American College of Cardiology's 55th Annual Scientific, Late-Breaking Clinical Trials Sessions. Dr. Wilmshurst is Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Shrewsbury. Dr. Dowson is Director of the King's Headache Service, Kings College Hospital, London.

MIST, which was conducted in the United Kingdom, is the first prospective, randomized, double-blinded study to evaluate the effect of PFO (patent foramen ovale) closure on Migraine headaches. NMT 's proprietary PFO closure technology, STARFlex®, was exclusively used in the study. A PFO is a common heart defect that is a risk factor for Migraine headaches in some patients. The PFO allows venous blood, unfiltered and unmanaged by the lungs, to enter the arterial blood circulation. The unfiltered venous blood may contain elements that can trigger Migraines in some patients...

Continue reading PFO and Migraine - What the UK MIST Trial Showed.

Fascinating...

quote:

...The MIST results indicated an approximate 37% reduction in Migraine burden (number of headaches multiplied by the length, in hours of headache)...

Yet again, migraine measured by the headache phase.