A wider range of antihypertensives could be used for migraine prevention than currently recommended in treatment guidelines, according to Australian doctors.

In addition to beta blockers, ARBs and calcium channel blockers, results from their meta-analysis suggest alpha blockers and ACEIs may also be effective in preventing migraines versus placebo treatment.

“The good news is that blood pressure medications are widely available at low cost … presenting a trusted treatment option alongside other preventive measures,” said joint principal investigator and former GP Dr Faraidoon Haghdoost, from The George Institute for Global Health in Sydney.

The researchers analysed data from 50 trials including more than 4300 participants (mean age 39) with episodic migraine to determine the effectiveness of different classes of blood pressure-lowering drugs.