Traditional treatment of migraine - herbal preparations, prevention, diet for migraine

Migraine prevention

To prevent the disease and prevent migraine attacks, medications and non-drug methods are used in combination.

The main goal of treatment is to reduce the frequency and severity of migraine attacks.

To help with the symptoms of an attack, the first thing you should do is, without waiting for the pain to intensify, drink a cup of strong sweet tea with any sweets.

Glucose, which is so necessary for the brain during hypoxia, can prevent a migraine attack.

The most correct thing to do during a migraine attack is to retire to a darkened, quiet room, protect yourself from sharp, loud sounds and smells and try to fall asleep. Deep sleep for at least 2-3 hours, as a rule, completely relieves a migraine attack.

An attack can be prevented by changing the type of breathing. It is enough to take 5-6 shallow breaths into the stomach and longer exhalations.

With proper and timely implementation of these techniques in the initial period, a migraine attack can be avoided.

Non-drug methods are used:

• acupuncture
• collar area massage
• darsonvalization of the head and collar area
• water procedures - pearl
• pine baths
• physical therapy with an emphasis on the cervical spine

Mustard plaster on the neck, sleeping pills (30–50 drops of Valocordin), head massage and washing in very hot water in the shower improve well-being. An effective remedy for relieving a migraine attack is a warm foot bath (or a warm heating pad on the feet).

As various studies show, the occurrence of migraines can be associated, among other things, with poor nutrition. By adjusting your daily menu, a migraine attack will remind you less and less often.

To begin with, you should eliminate or reduce to a minimum the amount of foods that contribute to migraine attacks, and at the same time introduce into your menu those foods that have a calming effect; These products include fish oil.

An excellent remedy for migraines is ginger. It acts as a pain reliever. Peppermint has soothing and refreshing properties. It can be added to drinks or used as an addition to desserts.

Introduce pepper into your diet. It’s not for nothing that it’s called the king of spices; it contains capsaicin, a substance that instantly relieves pain.

When following a special “anti-migraine” diet, it is important not to skip meals under any circumstances. If you fast, your blood sugar levels will drop, which can cause severe headaches. Eat more foods rich in calcium and magnesium. These include nuts, greens, and grains.

Modern medicines

A special project about modern medicines, the history of their creation, development methods and development trends.

The special project partner, Cytiva, was formed as a result of the sale of the GE Healthcare Biopharma division to Danaher Corporation. Cytiva is a global provider of technologies and services that advance and accelerate the development and manufacturing of therapeutics. The company has a rich heritage dating back hundreds of years. Cytiva's clients conduct life-saving activities ranging from basic biological research to the development of innovative vaccines, biologics and novel cell and gene therapies. The company's mission is to provide the tools and services they need to do things better, faster and safer, leading to better outcomes for patients.

The first two articles of our special project “Modern Medicines” were devoted to general issues of how the drug industry developed [1] and how scientists search for new drug targets [2]. This article opens a number of news materials about interesting modern medicines.

Nutrition for migraine proneness

The table below will help you create a suitable menu for every day, which indicates products that relieve migraine attacks and reduce their frequency, and vice versa, those that should be avoided if you suffer from this disease.

"Aimovig" and competitors

It must be said that Novartis and Amgen already have serious competitors in the field of targeted anti-migraine therapy: Eli Lilly released Emgality, and Teva Pharmaceutical released Ajovy. These drugs are humanized monoclonal antibodies that target the ligand rather than the CGRP receptor, and in this way they differ from Aimovig, being inferior to the latter at least in tolerability. When using Ajovy, 43–45% of patients experienced pain, redness and itching at the injection site, when using Emgality, 18% of patients experienced such symptoms, and Aimovig caused such reactions only in 5–6% of cases. At the same time, Aimovig is also more convenient to use, since of the three listed drugs, only it comes in the form of an auto-injector - a device that resembles an insulin syringe pen - which needs to be used only once a month. The listed advantages, coupled with the fact that Aimovig became the first targeted drug for the treatment of migraine and immediately filled an empty niche in the market, will most likely provide it with a bright financial future: according to experts, its market share in 2024 will be $2 billion, while the predicted shares of competitors are approximately half as much [20].

The success of Aimovig, apparently, cannot be hampered even by the extremely high price ($575 per month according to the Amgen price list - however, in the United States, the drug is covered by insurance for many patients), which, by the way, some experts consider unreasonable [11]. The company is conducting research on Aimovig in Russia, but when the drug will appear on the market, how much it will cost and who will pay for it is still unknown.

Herbal medicine for migraines

Herbal medicine plays a supporting role in the treatment of migraine.

Plants with analgesic, antispasmodic, vasodilating, sedative, and restorative properties are used. Effective remedies in the fight against migraines are strong green tea, fresh viburnum juice, and black currant juice.

Folk remedies for the treatment of migraines

• Use hot foot baths, warm compresses on the head, tightening and bandaging the head, hot drinks
• During a migraine attack, you should place a cold rag on the area of ​​maximum pain, and immerse your feet in hot water. If the diseased part of the head has turned pale (that is, the blood has drained from it), then hot lotions should be placed on it. If there is no difference in skin color, then you can tie a hot towel around your entire head, grabbing your temples, and put a slice of fresh lemon on your temples
• A massage of the head and collar area is recommended, starting from the forehead and moving with both hands to the back of the head and below.
• It is useful to drink freshly squeezed juices of carrots, cucumbers and spinach
• Compresses with raw onions on the forehead are effective
• In the old days, during migraine attacks, it was advised to put a tampon soaked in onion juice in the ear.

Targeted therapy for migraine: a solution to the problem?

Since migraine is a chronic disease and the effectiveness and safety of the drugs used for prevention is poor, there is clearly an unmet need in this area; however, there are few new drugs specifically developed for this indication [14].

Amgen and Novartis can boast of a breakthrough today, having received approval in May 2021 for the use of the targeted drug Aimovig erenumab antibodies ) for the prevention of migraine in adult patients [20]. This is the first fully human antibody to be commercialized whose preventive effect is due to binding and blocking the CGRP receptor, which is considered critically important in the development of migraine (Fig. 3).

Figure 3. Aimovig specifically binds to the CGRP receptor, preventing CGRP from binding to it. The binding of CGRP to its receptor in a molecular complex (shown on the left) results in the transmission of pain signals associated with migraine. In people with migraine, CGRP levels are elevated during a painful attack and return to normal levels when the migraine pain subsides.

About Aimovig® (erenumab) in migraine prevention

Aimovig was approved after three series of clinical trials, the results of which, although slightly different, were similar in one thing: the drug showed a significant reduction in the number of days with attacks and the total duration of migraine pain. Moreover, in phase III trials, in 50% of patients taking 140 mg of Aimovig, the number of painful days decreased by half compared to placebo, and the safety and tolerability of the drug turned out to be quite similar to placebo [21], [22]. . These results are very encouraging, and it is clear that although Aimovig is not a panacea, its use will definitely change the lives of patients suffering from frequent and severe migraines for the better.

Antibody purification using continuous countercurrent chromatography

Biotechnologically derived antibodies can be purified using the chromatography equipment of this material's partner, Cytiva. This is done in continuous counter-current chromatography (PCC) mode on an ÄKTA pcc . In combination with the minimal dimensions of the system, continuous chromatography technology ensures the most efficient use of the chromatographic sorbent (resin). This method is particularly suitable for the purification of unstable molecules, as the rapid process ensures the stability of the target product. The ÄKTA pcc system is based on the well-established and widely used ÄKTA chromatography system platform by scientists around the world. Key features of the ÄKTA pcc system:

• Flow rate: 0.5–75 ml/min.
• Maximum operating pressure: 20 bar.
• Supports three and four column PCC configuration (3C and 4C PCC).
• Integrated UV detectors: one tunable wavelength (three values) and three fixed wavelength (280 nm).
• Monitors for tracking pH and conductivity readings.
• Interactive visualization that continuously shows column status and process progress.
• Trend lines that allow you to immediately begin analyzing the information received about the process.

ÄKTA chromatography systems can be used in conjunction with AxiChrom columns, although they are also suitable for larger scale protein purifications. A wide range of column sizes of the same type (Figure 4) allows protein purification to be scaled up with minimal parameter changes.

Figure 4. AxiChrom is a family of pilot-scale to industrial-scale protein purification columns with i.d. diameters of 50–1600 mm. AxiChrom columns successfully combine standardization and customization and are compatible with a variety of advanced media, such as MabSelect SuRe™ antibody purification resin.

Cytiva's research has confirmed the similarity between the protein purified in the laboratory and in production. In this case, the volume of the drug was scaled by 294 times (Fig. 5).

Figure 5. Comparison of chromatograms obtained using ÄKTA pcc on HiTrap columns (a) and AxiChrom 50 columns (b)

Material provided by our partner - Cytiva

What herbs can be used for headaches?

Getting rid of headaches and migraines using natural remedies is quite effective. To relieve symptoms, you can use herbs for migraines :

• mint;
• rosehip color;
• lemon balm;
• St. John's wort;
• valerian;
• ginger;
• elder;
• chamomile;
• sagebrush;
• oregano;
• motherboard;
• rosemary.

All of these herbs are the most commonly used for pain relief and actually produce results in the fight against migraine symptoms. They can also be used to prevent attacks. A course of regular use allows you to make attacks much less frequent and, over time, cure the disease completely.

Medicinal herbs can not only relieve pain, but also cope well with nervous tension, relieve stress, raise general tone, improve a person’s mood and psychological state.

Before starting migraine treatment with herbs, you need to consult a doctor and undergo a full examination to rule out the presence of other more dangerous diseases. You can also find out from a specialist what herbs help with migraines .

How to distinguish a migraine from a regular headache?

The main symptom of migraine is the locality of the pain. As a rule, this is an intense throbbing pain in the frontal lobe, only on one side
. The localization of pain is mainly more focused on the eye area and temporal region.

But there are also other signs:

• frequent dizziness;
• poor appetite and nausea;
• vomiting with severe pain;
• fatigue and drowsiness;
• anxiety and depression;
• numbness of the limbs;
• severe irritability and sensitivity to bright lights, smells and sounds.

Literature

1. Three generations of drugs;
2. Search for drug targets;
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20. Dmitriev R. (2019). "Aimovig" will turn chronic migraine into episodic. "Mosmedpreparaty";
21. Aimovig (erenumab) for the treatment of episodic migraine. Clinical Trials Arena;
22. Khoruzhaya A. (2018). A new anti-migraine drug goes on sale. "Neuronews";
23. Targeted therapy is a targeted strike against the disease.