Clinical trials of vasoactive and antiserotonin drugs in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

In clinical trials of vasoactive and antiserotonin agents in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, we found that methysergide, 8 mg daily, was associated with an average 44% improvement in Gower Time (i.e., time to arise from supine) and an average 16% improvement in ward walking time. We then did a double blind crossover study of methysergide and found an average improvement of 33% in head holding time with methysergide compared to placebo. In other tests, including grip strength, ward walking time, and Gower Time, methysergide average scores always were better than placebo average scores, but never by more than 12%, and at no time did the differences reach statistical significance. There was no clinical or laboratory evidence of toxicity of methysergide. We conclude, that under the conditions of testing, there was no statistically significant evidence for short-term benefit from methysergide in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.