What Researchers Did
Researchers investigated if pure oxygen inhalation could reduce headache induced by glyceryl trinitrate in 18 healthy subjects using a double-blind crossover design.
What They Found
Glyceryl trinitrate induced headache in 89% (16/18) of subjects after oxygen inhalation and 94% (17/18) after air inhalation. The mean peak headache scores were 1.9 with oxygen and 2.4 with air on a 0-10 scale, indicating no significant effect of oxygen.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
For Canadian patients experiencing headaches, this study suggests that pure oxygen inhalation is unlikely to alleviate headaches induced by substances like glyceryl trinitrate. Patients should continue to rely on established treatments for their specific headache conditions rather than pure oxygen for this type of headache.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection as it was not conducted in Canada nor involved Canadian researchers or participants.
Study Limitations
A limitation of this study is that the theoretical decrease in nitric oxide levels from oxygen inhalation may have been too small to be detected within the glyceryl trinitrate headache model.