IS CHEST PAIN AFTER SUMATRIPTAN ESOPHAGEAL IN ORIGIN

3-5% of patients taking the 5HT(1D) agonist sumatriptan for migraine have chest discomfort, suggesting a cardiac origin. We have investigated an alternative explanation of an oesophageal cause in 24 volunteers after the subcutaneous administration of a supratherapeutic dose of sumatriptan (16 mg) or placebo in a randomised, double-blind crossover study. Sumatriptan did not alter the electrocardiogram but increased the amplitude (p<0.001) and duration (p<0.001) of oesophageal contractions without affecting velocity of propagation. Clinically abnormal motility was also increased (p=0.001), and was more common in the 5 subjects with chest pain after sumatriptan. The effect of sumatriptan on oesophageal function provides an alternative explanation for the chest symptoms.