Conditions: Migraine Disorders
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: FACTORIAL
Enrollment: 60
Healthy volunteers: yes

Brief summary:
This is a research study to assess the safety of caffeine/propranolol at different dose levels. We want to find out what effects, good and/or bad, it has on patients and their migraines.

Detailed description:
There will be a screening exam to find out if potential subjects are eligible to be in the main part of the study. Screening will include obtaining demographics, migraine history, migraine characteristics, verification that subjects's migraine satisfies the International Headache Society criteria, migraine medication history with success and failure rates, and medical history.

If a subject is female, we will need to confirm to the extent medically possible that they are not pregnant. Female subjects must agree to have a urine pregnancy test done before beginning this research study. If a subject is a woman who is able to become pregnant, it is expected that they will use an effective method of birth control to prevent exposing a fetus to a potentially dangerous agent with unknown risk. They must accept the risk that pregnancy could still result despite the responsible use of reliable method of birth control.

They agree to notify Dr. Cho as soon as possible of any failure of proper use of your birth control method, or if you become pregnant, either of which may result in your being withdrawn from the study.

Subjects will also undergo a liver function test as well as an EKG to make sure they are eligible for the study.

Once subject eligibility has been determined, they will be randomized to one of 3 study groups described below. Neither the subjects nor the doctor can choose which group subjects will be in nor will subjects or their doctor know which group subjects are in. They will have a one in three chance of being placed in any group. Two groups will be active treatment with either 400 mg caffeine and 40 mg propranolol or 1000 mg caffeine and 40 mg propranolol. The third group will be a placebo group with no active medication.

Subjects will then be given a study kit, which includes caffeine/propranolol or placebo oral medication, a treatment booklet, migraine headache diary, pen and stopwatch. The study coordinator will then instruct them in the accurate method of diary completion and use of the oral medication or placebo pill. Their final visit will be scheduled within 60 days of enrollment.

They will be instructed to treat one moderate or severe migraine attack with the study medication. They will be instructed to take study medication at aura onset in the presence of another adult.

In the absence of any aura, they will be instructed to take study medication at headache onset. Another adult should be present when taking the study medication to ensure safety. In the event that the migraine occurs while they are alone, the subjects are instructed not to take the study medication and to wait for the next headache when adult supervision is available. They will not be allowed to use any non-steroidal,anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen or naproxen sodium, non-prescription analgesics such as acetaminophen or aspirin, narcotic analgesics such as oxycontin, oxycodone, triptan or ergotamine medication or derivatives (Cafergot®, D.H.E., 45®\[dihydroergotamine mesylate\], Efcaf®, Ergomar®, Ergostat®, Migranal®, Nasal Spray, Sansert®\[methysergide\], or Wigraine®) within 24 hours prior to dosing with the study medication. Subjects will also be instructed not to use any caffeine such as coffee, tea, caffeine containing sodas, or caffeine containing medications (Cafcit®, Caffedrine®, Enerjets, Lucidex, No Doz® Maximum Strength, Vivarin®) within 6 hours prior to dosing with the study medication.

Subjects will record the severity of their headache and associated symptoms at baseline and 15, 30, 45, 60, and 120 minutes after dosing. If the migraine does not resolve or worsens after 2 hours, they will be allowed to take #rescue medication# as prescribed by their physician. Subjects will continue to record the severity of their headache and associated symptoms for 4, 12, and 24 hours after initial dosing. Following the last entry in the subject diary at 24 hours, they will be asked to complete a treatment satisfaction questionnaire. They will also be asked to contact Dr. Cho#s office to review their diary completion and to confirm the date of their final visit.

If subjects have not called to report a migraine within a month (±7 days) of enrollment, Dr. Cho or someone from his research staff will call them to determine if they have treated a migraine. If a migraine was treated, Dr. Cho or the study staff will interview them to determine if the diary has been appropriately completed and to ensure that adequate information has been recorded. Their final visit will be confirmed and should occur within 30 days of the treated migraine. If they have not treated a migraine with the study medication within the first 30 days of enrollment, their final visit will be rescheduled within 60 days of your enrollment date (± 7 days).

At the final visit, the study coordinator will review their subject diary for completeness and accuracy. All study materials will need to be returned at this visit. Subjects will then have a second EKG to make sure the medication didn't have any negative effects on their cardiac function. Subjects will be given a voucher to pay for parking expenses. In addition, there will be a data safety monitoring unblinding event after the first 15 patients have completed the study. All serious and non-serious adverse events will be analyzed regardless of the investigators' assessments of causality. Adverse events that result in death, hospitalization, permanent disability or threat to life are classified as serious. The Medical Dictionary of Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) will be used to categorize reported adverse events. Someone who is not directly related to the research team will conduct the safety monitoring.

If there are any serious adverse events during the study, the study will be discontinued.

Arms:
arm 1: Participants will receive placebo to match caffeine/propranolol (single dose) arm 2: Participants will receive caffeine/propranolol 400/40 mg combination tablet (single dose) arm 3: Participants will receive caffeine/propranolol 1000/40 mg combination tablet (single dose)

Interventions: intervention 1: caffeine/propranolol combination tablet intervention 2: placebo
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: caffeine/propranolol combination tablet administered orally once daily intervention 2: placebo to match caffeine/propranolol combination tablet administered orally once daily

Protocol document: