Migraine drug could kill alcohol desire - Study

A medication, widely used to treat migraines and seizures, can also help block alcoholic's desire for consuming alcohol, a team of US researchers has found, giving alcoholics one more alternative to curb their drinking habit. Topiramate, a migraine pill commonly known by the brand name Topamax, can be beneficial for the treatment of alcohol dependence.

Manufactured by Ortho-McNeil Neurologics Inc., a division of Johnson & Johnson, Topamax is generically prescribed as topiramte and is commonly used in the treatment of seizures as an anticonvulsant. The drug is often used to prevent the onset of migraine headaches as well.

However, a new study in Wednesday's Journal of the American Medical Association says the migraine pill can also reduce alcohol dependence and the number of days when alcoholics drink heavily.

Funded by the maker of the Topamax drug, Johnson & Johnson Inc., the study was headed by Bankole Johnson, chairman of the Department of Psychiatric Medicine at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

The researchers have reported that the migraine medication helps alcoholics gradually lessen their drinking without having to go through detoxification. The pill works in a different way than the current three medications on the market already approved to treat alcoholism.

"I think it offers a new hope for patients," says Dr. Johnson. "It offers a hope that patients can get immediate treatment, and it reinforces the fact that alcoholism is a brain disorder and can be treated with medications."

The current approved medications for treating alcohol dependence are given after an alcoholic has dropped his or her drinking habit or has gone through detox treatment, which can be difficult for many people. The researchers are now seeking some better treatments that can be used while people are still drinking.

To reach their findings, Dr. Johnson and colleagues conducted a multi-site, 14-week, randomized controlled trial, in which they enrolled 371 men and women age 18 to 65 years who all were diagnosed with alcohol dependence. The trial was conducted at 17 sites between January 2004 and August 2006.

About half of the patients (183) were given Topamax at varying doses and the other group of heavy drinkers (188) received a placebo, or sugar pill, along with a weekly psychosocial treatment to promote adherence with the study medication and the treatment regimen and a 15-minute weekly counseling session as well. All the patients in the study were encouraged, but not required, to stop drinking.

After following the study subjects for 14 weeks, the researchers found that 27 of the 183 people, or 15 percent, who were treated with Topamax had quit drinking entirely for seven weeks or more, compared with six out of 188, or 3 percent, in the placebo recipients.

Men used to drink 35 or more standard drinks per week and women consumed 28 or more standard drinks per week in the 28-day period prior to being screened for the trial.

In addition, the percentage of heavy drinking days also fell in both groups. The percentage of heavy drinking days fell to 43.8 percent from 81.9 percent in the Topamax group, while in the placebo group it dropped to 51.8 percent from 82 percent.

"You can come in drinking a bottle of scotch a day and get treatment without detox," said Dr. Johnson.

The study however also showed Topamax did carry side effects. Study subjects assigned the drug did report some side effects, including pins-and-needles sensations, fatigue, difficulty concentrating and headaches among other things.

The drug appeared to be safe and effective for the treatment of alcoholism, concluded the researchers, adding that a future study to determine the use of the drug in community health care settings is in the works.

Alcohol addiction or Alcoholism, also known as "alcohol dependence" is a chronic and often progressive disease that includes alcohol craving and continued drinking despite repeated alcohol-related problems, such as losing a job or getting into trouble with the law as well as the pain and suffering of the individuals and their families.

In addition to the health issues including heart disease, cancer, prancreatitis and liver disease, traffic accidents are the other factors related to the alcohol abuse.

As per the estimates of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly 13,000 people died in crashes due to the drunk drivers in 2005. And, according to an estimate provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2001, 75,000 people died because of excessive alcohol use.