Not Yet RecruitingPhase 3ACTRN12625001072404

Intravenous Lignocaine for Acute Migraine

IV Lignocaine for Acute Migraine: A Pilot Study Evaluating Efficacy in the Emergency Department

Sponsor

Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service

Enrollment

33 participants

Start Date

Feb 9, 2026

Study Type

Interventional

Conditions

Migraine

Summary

This study is testing whether intravenous (IV) lignocaine, a medicine normally used as a local anaesthetic, can help relieve severe migraine attacks in the Emergency Department. Adults who come to hospital with migraine that has not improved with their usual treatments may be invited to take part. Participants will receive lignocaine through a drip over one hour, together with a routine medicine called dexamethasone, and their pain and side effects will be closely monitored. If the migraine does not improve after two hours, standard treatments will still be provided. The aim of this pilot study is to see if IV lignocaine is safe, practical to use, and shows early signs of effectiveness, so that larger studies can be planned.

Eligibility

Sex: Both males and femalesMin Age: 18 Yearss

Inclusion Criteria3

Adults aged greater then or equal to 18 years
Presenting to the emergency department with a migraine not responding to the patient’s usual analgesic choice
Patients previously enrolled are eligible for repeat inclusion if they present with a separate episode of migraine unrelated to the previously treated migraine

Exclusion Criteria12

Suspected secondary headache
Thunderclap headache
Presence of fever
Neurological deficits
Altered mental status
First presentation of headache in a patient aged >50 years
Symptoms suggestive of temporal arteritis
Signs of meningeal irritation
Post-traumatic headache
Pregnancy
Inability or unwillingness to provide informed consent
Known allergy to lignocaine

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Interventions

Medications will be administered by the nurse involved in the patients care. Total dose, timing and any side effects will be documented in the case report form. Intravenous lignocaine 1.5mg/kg (maxi

Medications will be administered by the nurse involved in the patients care. Total dose, timing and any side effects will be documented in the case report form. Intravenous lignocaine 1.5mg/kg (maximum 150mg) over 3-5 minutes followed by 10mg iv dexamethasone then lignocaine 1mg/kg in 1L 0.9% saline over 60 minutes.