Study: Botox Can Identify Migraine Trigger Sites

Botulinum toxin type A (Botox) injections could be useful in nerve decompression migraine surgery, according to a study in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

“Diagnostic targeted Botox injections have a very high positive predictive value,” the authors write. “It is therefore a useful diagnostic modality that can help identify migraine trigger sites and improve preoperative patient selection.

In the study, researchers at McGill University Health Centre and Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center performed a sensitivity analysis on all patients receiving Botox for migraine trigger site localization, followed by a surgical decompression of affected peripheral nerves. Positive and negative predictive values were calculated. Sensitivity analysis showed that the use of Botox injection as a diagnostic modality for migraine headaches had a sensitivity of 56.7% and a specificity of 80.0%. The positive predictive value was 89.5% and the negative predictive value was 38.1%.