Higher Circulating IL-6 levels as a predictor for poor outcome after migraine preventive treatment: a prospective study
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Clinical and preclinical evidence suggests an association between higher levels of IL-6 and migraine. The present study aimed to determine whether pretreatment serum IL-6 levels were associated with headache outcomes at month 3 following migraine preventive treatment. METHODS: In this prospective study, newly diagnosed migraine patients without current or recent use of preventive medications within 3 months were recruited, and were dichotomized as having higher or lower IL-6 serum levels according to the median at baseline among all of the patients who started preventive treatment with flunarizine. Primary and secondary outcomes were the mean change from baseline in the number of monthly headache days (MHDs) at month 3 based on headache diaries, and the percentage of non-responders, i.e., patients without ≥ 50% MHD reduction at month 3 compared to baseline, respectively. Logistic regression analysis was performed to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the association between higher IL-6 levels and treatment non-response, which were further controlled for demographics, headache profiles, disability (measured by Migraine Disability Assessment), psychiatric comorbidities (measured by Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), and sleep quality (measured by Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index). RESULTS: In total, 236 migraine patients (187 F/49 M, mean age ± standard deviation 37.1 ± 10.3 years) were analyzed. At baseline, the median IL-6 level…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a clinical trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 236 participants or records.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Calcium Ions in the Physiology and Pathology of the Central Nervous System
- AI-powered in silico twins: redefining precision medicine through simulation, personalization, and predictive healthcare
- In silico functional, structural and pathogenicity analysis of missense single nucleotide polymorphisms in human MCM6 gene
- In Silico drug repurposing pipeline using deep learning and structure based approaches in epilepsy
- Targeting serotonin receptors with phytochemicals – an in-silico study
- In silico exploration of anti-prostate cancer compounds from differential expressed genes
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.