title: Clinical features and therapy of medication overuse headache.
abstract: Inappropriate use of headache medication (>15 times/month) for the treatment of headache episodes may contribute to the development of chronic headache which is refractory to most treatments. Physicians experienced in the treatment of migraine and other headaches are well aware that the daily intake of antipyretic or antiinflammatory analgesics, opioids, ergot alkaloids and "triptans" may result in chronic daily headache. Conversely, if a patient complains of chronic headache and takes pain medication every day, this headache is most likely to be caused and sustained by the medication and will vanish or improve with abstinence. Treatment includes drug withdrawal followed by structured acute therapy and initiation of migraine prophylactic treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Diusburg-Essen, Essen, Germany. ilker.kavuk@uni-essen.de
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kavuk
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Katsarava
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Selekler
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sayar
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Agelink
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Limmroth
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Diener
mesh_terms: D020773:Headache Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis