Researchers from the NYU School of Medicine have created an app that can help migraine patients practice progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) treatment using just their smartphones.
The team studied the Relaxahead app and found that patients who used the app two times a week and had previously experienced an average of 13 headache-days a month, had, on average, four fewer headache-days per month. The study suggests that accessible smartphone technology can teach patients lifelong skills to manage migraines.
PMR is a kind of behavioral therapy where patients alternatively relax and tense muscle groups to reduce stress. When a patient is diagnosed with migraines, doctors often prescribe medication and clinical behavioral therapy. Although doctor’s visits are often key to treating migraines, clinical behavioral therapy can be expensive and time-consuming because it requires the patient to make frequent clinical visits. Consequently, Relaxahead was born from the team's desire to make cognitive therapy easily accessible and inexpensive.
Following development, Relaxahead was tested on 51 migraine patients from NY Langon Health who owned smartphones. The patients were given the app and instructed to use it for 90 days. They were also asked to keep a record of the frequency and severity of their headaches during this time while the app tracked how long and how often the patients used it.
The study suggested that patients are more likely to partake in behavioral therapy if it is easily accessible, flexible and affordable. Yet, most patients still didn’t stick to using the app long term. After three weeks, participation dropped to 51% and after three months participation dropped to 29%. The team is now looking for ways to encourage participation and to introduce the app to clinical practices.
The study was published in Nature Digital Medicine.
