Evidence-based analysis of a migraine treatment drug comparison trial.
Patients present with specific problems against a background of their particular situation. The applicability of a treatment to a specific case may be difficult to assess in the light of the information available on that treatment. Evidence-based medicine is a discipline developed to achieve the best informed treatment decisions in clinical situations. In this paper, we illustrate a logical approach to reaching a decision regarding which of two migraine treatments should be used in a clearly defined patient. The information evaluated is a comparative trial between sumatriptan (100 mg), rizatriptan (5 and 10 mg) and placebo. The use of the analytical tools of evidence-based medicine is demonstrated in this exercise. The example was chosen because this is an area of great current interest in the field of neurology.
Gawel
M
M
Department of Medicine, Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Wiebe
S
S
D000328:Adult; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*; D018170:Sumatriptan / Q000008:administration & dosage; D014230:Triazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage; D014363:Tryptamines
D014230:Triazoles; D014363:Tryptamines; C093622:rizatriptan; D018170:Sumatriptan