Menopause and its impact on the effectiveness of fremanezumab for migraine prophylaxis: post-hoc analysis of a prospective, real-world Greek registry.

Abstract

Objective: This post-hoc analysis of data extracted from a prospective study aimed to explore for the first time if the efficacy of fremanezumab in preventing difficult-to-treat migraine, according to ICHD-III, would differ between pre-menopausal and post-menopausal women.

Methods: A total of 171 (aged 18-70 years) fremanezumab-treated female migraine patients for six consecutive months were classified to those at pre-menopausal (n = 82) or post-menopausal (n = 89). Monthly headache days (MHD), disability, and quality of life (QOL) outcomes were assessed at baseline and at week 24 post-fremanezumab within subgroups and were then compared between them. Safety and tolerability were also assessed.

Results: In both groups, fremanezumab demonstrated significant reductions in MHDs, reduced disability, and higher QOL scores at week 24 post-treatment, compared to baseline. However, the between-subgroup comparison documented that pre-menopausal women and those at post-menopausal comparably benefited with significant reductions in overall MHDs (p = 0.883). Less disability, according to MIDAS (p = 0.696) and HIT-6 scores (p = 0.912), as well as higher QOL scores at week 24 post-fremanezumab, were also comparably evident in both groups. Safety was excellent across both subgroups.

Conclusion: Fremanezumab can be considered a very effective treatment option for preventing migraines in difficult-to-treat women, aged 18-70 years, regardless of their menopausal status.