The potency of migraine prophylaxis with nilvadipine: eight cases reported with further consideration

Abstract Calcium antagonists are widely used in migraine prophylaxis. Flunarizine, a calcium antagonist is the most popular drug in prophylactic treatment of migraine in Japan, however, flunarizine is no longer sold in Japan. Therefore, we evaluated the effectiveness of the nilvadipine, a calcium antagonist, which has strong vasodilatatory action on cerebral vessels and is a safe drug in prophylactic treatment of migraine patients. Eight migraineurs were retrospectively studied, all patients took 4 mg of nilvadipine P.O. Nilvadipine significantly reduced migraine frequency and severity. Our results suggest that nilvadipine varies with regard to scientific trial study for prophylactic treatment of migraine in future.