Canadian Headache Society systematic review and recommendations on the treatment of migraine pain in emergency settings.

Background: There is a considerable amount of practice variation in managing migraines in emergency settings, and evidence-based therapies are often not used first line.

Methods: A peer-reviewed search of databases (MEDLINE, Embase, CENTRAL) was carried out to identify randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials of interventions for acute pain relief in adults presenting with migraine to emergency settings. Where possible, data were pooled into meta-analyses.

Canadian Headache Society Guideline: acute drug therapy for migraine headache.

Objectives: The primary objective of this guideline is to assist the practitioner in choosing an appropriate acute medication for an individual with migraine, based on current evidence in the medical literature and expert consensus. It is focused on patients with episodic migraine ( headache on ≤ 14 days a month).

Methods: A detailed search strategy was used to find a relevant meta-analyses, systematic reviews and randomized double-blind controlled trials.

Canadian Headache Society guideline for migraine prophylaxis.

Objectives: The primary objective of this guideline is to assist the practitioner in choosing an appropriate prophylactic medication for an individual with migraine, based on current evidence in the medical literature and expert consensus. This guideline is focused on patients with episodic migraine (headache on ≤ 14 days a month).

Methods: Through a comprehensive search strategy, randomized, double blind, controlled trials of drug treatments for migraine prophylaxis and relevant Cochrane reviews were identified.

Differential effects of a complex organochlorine mixture on the proliferation of breast cancer cell lines.

Organochlorine compounds (OCs) are a group of persistent chemicals that accumulate in fatty tissues with age. Although OCs has been tested individually for their capacity to induce breast cancer cell proliferation, few studies examined the effect of complex mixtures that comprise compounds frequently detected in the serum of women. We constituted such an OC mixture containing 15 different components in environmentally relevant proportions and assessed its proliferative effects in four breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, T47D, CAMA-1, MDAMB231) and in non-cancerous CV-1 cells.

1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (p,p'-DDE) disrupts the estrogen-androgen balance regulating the growth of hormone-dependent breast cancer cells.

Introduction: Estrogen and androgen signalling pathways exert opposing influences on the proliferation of mammary epithelial and hormone-dependent breast cancer cells. We previously reported that plasma concentrations of 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (p,p'-DDE), the main metabolite of the insecticide DDT (1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis [p-chlorophenyl]ethane) and a potent androgen antagonist, were associated with tumor aggressiveness in women diagnosed with breast cancer. We sought to examine the biological plausibility of this association by testing the effect of p,p'-DDE on the proliferation of CAMA-1 cells, a human breast cancer cell line that expresses the estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) and the androgen receptor (AR), in the presence of physiological concentrations of estrogens and androgens in the cell culture medium.

Migraine prevalence, diagnosis, and disability.

The goal of the Canadian Migraine Forum was to work towards improving the lives of Canadians with migraine by reducing their migraine-related disability. This paper reviews the epidemiology and diagnosis of migraine, and the effects of migraine on health related quality of life. Many patients with migraine do not consult a physician for their headaches, and when they do they often do not receive a correct diagnosis.

A clinical study of migraine evolution.

Background: The buildup time of migraine headaches has not been well delineated in publications to date and we are aware of patients whose migraines last well over 72 hours. More concentration on these factors in the assessment of patients might lead to more appropriate therapeutic choices.

Method: Prospective ascertainment of such data through a questionnaire completed by 253 informed and willing patients with IHS migraine with or without aura consulting Canadian headache specialists.

Fanconi anemia genes are highly expressed in primitive CD34+ hematopoietic cells.

BACKGROUND: Fanconi anemia (FA) is a complex recessive genetic disease characterized by progressive bone marrow failure (BM) and a predisposition to cancer. We have previously shown using the Fancc mouse model that the progressive BM failure results from a hematopoietic stem cell defect suggesting that function of the FA genes may reside in primitive hematopoietic stem cells. METHODS: Since genes involved in stem cell differentiation and/or maintenance are usually regulated at the transcription level, we used a semiquantitative RT-PCR method to evaluate FA gene transcript levels in purified hematopoietic stem cells.

Melatonin as adjunctive therapy in the prophylaxis of cluster headache: a pilot study.

Background: The periodicity of cluster headache suggests involvement of the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus, the biological clock. The secretion of melatonin, a hormone produced by the pineal gland and regulated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus, is altered in patients with cluster headache. Melatonin shifts circadian rhythms.

A headache diagnosis project.

Background: Despite the availability of objective criteria, the diagnosis of migraine is thought to be missed frequently in primary practice.

Objective: To determine the most important questions assisting in the clinical diagnosis of migraine headache.

Methods: A cohort of 461 patients referred to headache specialists in Canada was assessed using a pro-forma questionnaire that was completed by the patients alone or administered by the physicians themselves.

Hematopoietic stem cells from fancc(-/-) mice have lower growth and differentiation potential in response to growth factors.

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a complex recessive genetic disease characterized by progressive bone marrow (BM) failure. We have previously shown that stem cells from the FA group C mouse model have lower long-term primary and secondary reconstitution ability, and that bone marrow of Fancc(-/-) mice contained fewer lineage-negative (Lin(-))Thy1.2(low)Sca-1(+)c-kit(+) CD34(+) cells but normal levels of Lin(-)Thy1.

Improving patient compliance to prophylactic migraine therapy.

As in many other chronic conditions, adherence to prophylactic treatment in migraine is probably poor. In chronic diseases, compliance at one year does not exceed 50%. That could explain the low therapeutic gain seen with migraine preventive medications.