Effects of Intravenous and Oral Magnesium on Reducing Migraine: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
What was done
A systematic review and meta-analysis following PRISMA guidelines searched EMBASE, PubMed, Wanfang Data, and CNKI through February 24, 2015. Eligible studies were randomized controlled trials comparing intravenous or oral magnesium to a control group for acute migraine relief or migraine prophylaxis.
What was found
Twenty-one RCTs were included: - Intravenous magnesium (11 studies, n = 948) significantly relieved acute migraine attacks at 15–45 minutes (OR = 0.23), 120 minutes (OR = 0.20), and 24 hours post-infusion (OR = 0.25). - Oral magnesium (10 studies, n = 789) significantly reduced migraine frequency (OR = 0.20) and migraine intensity (OR = 0.27). (Exact confidence intervals and p-values were not reported in the abstract).
Why it matters
This review pools conflicting trial data to show that magnesium is effective both intravenously for acute abortive therapy and orally for preventive management in migraine.
Limits
Some included trials lacked adequate randomization methods. The abstract does not report confidence intervals, between-study heterogeneity, adverse event rates, or the specific dosages and salt formulations of magnesium used.
Cited by
- supports Scientific research shows that increasing magnesium intake reduces the occurrence of migraine headaches.