Manual therapy for chronic migraine: a pragmatic randomised controlled trial study protocol

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Pain Medicine
• Rehabilitation

Background:

• Chronic migraine affects 1-2.2% of the global population, disproportionately impacting females.
• Current pharmacological treatments for chronic migraine have limited efficacy and potential side effects.
• There is a need for improved treatment options to reduce the burden of chronic migraine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of manual therapy as an adjunctive treatment for chronic migraine.
• To assess the impact of manual therapy on patient-reported outcomes in chronic migraine sufferers.
• To explore manual therapy's potential to improve quality of life and reduce medication use in chronic migraine.

Main Methods:

• A pragmatic, randomized controlled trial was conducted in a tertiary headache clinic.
• Participants were assigned to either treatment as usual or treatment as usual plus manual therapy.
• The primary outcome was the change in Headache Impact Test score over a 12-week period.

Main Results:

• Manual therapy added to standard care demonstrated improvements in patient-reported outcomes.
• Secondary outcomes, including headache frequency and quality of life, were also assessed.
• The study achieved its recruitment target, ensuring adequate statistical power.

Conclusions:

• Adding manual therapy to tertiary specialist care may improve outcomes for chronic migraine patients.
• Manual therapy presents a viable adjunctive treatment option for managing chronic migraine.
• Further research and publication in peer-reviewed journals are planned.