Can a migraine pill sway the Body's balance reflex?
NCT ID NCT07826910
First seen Sep 17, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers want to know whether CGRP, a protein involved in migraine, also affects the vestibulo-ocular reflex, the automatic eye movement that keeps vision steady when the head turns. The trial gives 80 people at the University Hospital Zurich either a single dose of atogepant, an approved migraine drug that blocks the CGRP receptor, or a placebo, in random order. Forty healthy adults join first, then 40 people with episodic or chronic migraine. At each visit, participants take a capsule and then complete eye-movement and balance tests. The study measures changes in the reflex to learn how CGRP works in the balance system.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- atogepant, a migraine prevention drug that blocks the CGRP receptor
- What this could lead to
- If blocking CGRP changes the balance reflex, researchers could better understand how migraine and dizziness connect, which may guide future treatments for dizziness.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, short-term study in 80 people, and it measures a reflex rather than symptoms. A single dose may be too brief to show an effect, and the results may not apply to long-term use of CGRP-blocking drugs.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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About 80 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jan 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 65 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: Healthy participants (Phase 1 of enrolment): * Age 18 to 65 years * No functional or structural vestibular disorder * No history of unilateral or bilateral vestibulopathy * No diagnosis of migraine * Written informed consent provided by the participant Participants with migraine (Phase 2 of enrolment): * Diagnosis of episodic or chronic migraine according to the ICHD-3 criteria * Age 18 to 65 years * No functional or structural vestibular disorder * No history of unilateral or bilateral vestibulopathy * Written informed consent provided by the participant Exclusion Criteria: * Hypersensitivity to atogepant * Intake of any CGRP-antagonist medication within the last 6 months * Known impaired kidney function with a creatinine clearance below 30 mL/min, or known impaired liver function (Child-Pugh B or C) * Insufficiently controlled, unstable or newly diagnosed cardiovascular disease, for example ischaemic coronary disease, coronary vasospasm or cerebral ischaemia * Myocardial infarction, acute coronary syndrome, percutaneous coronary intervention, cardiac surgery, stroke of any kind or transient ischaemic attack within the last 6 months (24 weeks) * Medication overuse headache * Cardiac pacemaker or other implanted electronic device * Concomitant use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors, of strong or moderate CYP3A4 inducers, or of OATP1B1/OATP1B3 inhibitors * Pregnancy or breastfeeding; women of childbearing potential not using effective contraception during the study * Participation in another clinical trial with an investigational medicinal product within 30 days before the screening visit * Inability to understand the participant information or to give written informed consent
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University Hospital Zurich, Department of Neurology
Zurich, Canton of Zurich, 8091, Switzerland
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