London, April 18: In a breakthrough, scientists have found an antibody, a monthly dose of which could halve the number of debilitating attacks of migraine on patients who have exhausted all other treatments.
The findings showed that people treated with erenumab were nearly three times more likely to have reduced their migraine days by 50 per cent or more than those treated with placebo.
Those treated with erenumab also had a greater average reduction in the number of days they had headaches and the number of days they needed to take drugs to stop the migraines.
"Our study found that erenumab reduced the average number of monthly migraine headaches by more than 50 percent for nearly a third of study participants. That reduction in migraine headache frequency can greatly improve a person's quality of life," said Uwe Reuter from The Charite - University Medicine Berlin in Germany.
Erenumab is a monoclonal antibody that blocks pain signals by targeting a receptor for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP).
This peptide transmits migraine pain signals. Erenumab occupies the nerves to which CGRP would usually bind.
"Our results show that people who thought their migraines were difficult to prevent may actually have hope of finding pain relief," Reuter added.
The preliminary results will be presented at the forthcoming American Academy of Neurology's 70th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.
For the study, 246 people who had episodic migraine were given injections of either 140 milligrams of erenumab or a placebo once a month for three months.
Of the participants, 39 per cent had been treated unsuccessfully with two other medications, 38 per cent with three medications and 23 per cent with four medications.
A total of 30 per cent of the people treated with erenumab had half the number of headaches compared to 14 per cent on placebo.
For those on erenumab, there was an average 1.6 times greater reduction in migraine days and a 1.7 times greater reduction in acute medication days compared to those on placebo.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Elephant attacks man riding his children to school in Belthangady
Belthangady: In a shocking incident, a wild elephant attacked a man and his two children while they were on their way to school on a bike in Shishila village on Wednesday morning. The attack left the trio injured and their bike completely destroyed.
The victim, Vasantha Gowda, a resident of Kallaje in Shishila, was riding his bike to drop his children, Lavya and Advith, at Perla School in Shibaje village. The incident occurred around 8:30 AM when a lone elephant suddenly emerged on a curve in the road.
Startled by the sudden appearance of the animal, Vasantha Gowda braked abruptly, causing the bike to topple. All three fell to the ground, sustaining injuries to their arms and legs. As the elephant advanced, they managed to escape the scene, leaving their bike behind.
The elephant then approached the fallen bike, smashed it with its trunk, and completely crushed it underfoot.
The attack has heightened concerns among residents of Belthangady taluk, where incidents of human-elephant conflict have been rising. Locals have called on the Forest Department to take measures to prevent such encounters and ensure the safety of residents.
