Randomised trial, 2010
Which works better for premenstrual breast pain, cabergoline or bromocriptine?
Both drugs reduced breast pain equally well, with about two-thirds of women in each group responding. Cabergoline caused far fewer side effects.
What they did
A randomized, open-label trial where 61 women received bromocriptine 5mg daily during the second half of the menstrual cycle and 67 women received cabergoline 0.5mg weekly during the second half. Pain was measured on a visual analog scale, and a 50% or greater reduction was counted as a positive response. Side effects were tracked throughout.
What they found
Positive response rates were similar: bromocriptine 66.6% and cabergoline 68.4%. Pain reduction was greatest in the second month for both drugs. Bromocriptine caused significantly more side effects: vomiting in 28% of women versus 4.5% with cabergoline, nausea in 39% versus 20.9%, and headaches in 23% versus 6% (P = 0.023, 0.001, 0.006 respectively). Dizziness rates were similar between groups (26.4% vs 14.9%, not significant).
What it means for you
Cabergoline and bromocriptine work equally well for cyclic breast pain, but cabergoline is much better tolerated with fewer side effects, particularly nausea and vomiting. This was an open-label trial, meaning women and doctors knew which drug was being taken, which could have affected results.
66.6% vs 68.4%
pain relief success rates (bromocriptine vs cabergoline)
28% vs 4.5%
vomiting rates (bromocriptine vs cabergoline)
140
women with breast pain studied
About the study
- Original title
- Cabergoline versus bromocriptine for symptomatic treatment of premenstrual mastalgia: a randomised, open-label study
- Authors
- Aydin Y, Atis A, Kaleli S et al.
- Journal
- European journal of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology
- Year
- 2010
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- Participants
- 140
- What was tested
- Bromocriptine 5mg daily versus cabergoline 0.5mg weekly, both given during the second half of the menstrual cycle
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.ejogrb.2010.02.024
Topics
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