In a non-blinded randomized controlled trial, researchers sought to evaluate the efficacy of pain neuroscience education in combination with physiotherapy for migraine management. In this study, 82 patients with migraine were given physiotherapy and pain neuroscience education or physiotherapy alone, led by a waiting period of 3 months. Occurrence of headache, both with and without features of migraine, occurrence of migraine, and associated disability were the primary outcomes of the study.

Reductions of headache frequency post-treatment (physiotherapy: 0.77 days, 95%CI: −0.75 to 2.29 and physiotherapy + pain neuroscience education: 1.25 days, 95%CI: −0.05 to 2.55) and at follow up (physiotherapy: 1.93, 95%CI: 0.07 to 3.78 and physiotherapy + pain neuroscience education: 3.48 days, 95%CI: 1.89 to 5.06) was seen in both groups. At post-treatment, considerable reduction in migraine frequency was seen in the physiotherapy and pain neuroscience education cohort, but not in the physiotherapy alone group, (1.28 days, 95%CI: 0.34 to 2.22, p=.004) and follow up (3.05 days, 95%CI: 1.98 to 5.06, p<.0001). Considerable decreases in migraine-related disability were seen in both groups (physiotherapy: 19.8; physiotherapy + pain neuroscience education: 24.0 points, p<.001, d = 1.15).

Reference: Meise R, Carvalho GF, Thiel C, Luedtke K. Additional effects of pain neuroscience education combined with physiotherapy on the headache frequency of adult patients with migraine: A randomized controlled trial. Cephalalgia. 2023;43(2):3331024221144781. doi:10.1177/03331024221144781

Link: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/03331024221144781?rfr_dat=cr_pub++0pubmed&url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org