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Educate patients with medication overuse headache, and intervene, when necessary

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Abstract

Medication overuse headache (MOH) most commonly affects people with migraine, particularly in patients who overuse medications intended for short-term pain relief. Education is a very effective treatment option, however, many people need withdrawal support, especially those with psychiatric comorbidities or patients using opioids, barbiturates or benzodiazepines. Many patients also require longer-term migraine preventative medications, such as monoclonal antibodies against calcitonin gene-related peptide, which also show promise as a treatment for MOH.

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  1. Springer Nature, Mairangi Bay, Private Bag 65901, Auckland, 0754, New Zealand

    Caroline Fenton & Arnold Lee

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  1. Caroline Fenton
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  2. Arnold Lee
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Correspondence to Arnold Lee.

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The preparation of this review was not supported by any external funding.

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C. Fenton, a contracted employee of Adis International Ltd/Springer Nature, and A. Lee, a salaried employee of Adis International Ltd/Springer Nature, declare no relevant conflicts of interest. All authors contributed to the review and are responsible for the article content.

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Fenton, C., Lee, A. Educate patients with medication overuse headache, and intervene, when necessary. Drugs Ther Perspect 37, 573–578 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40267-021-00878-3

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