A CARE: pathway in medication-overuse headache: the experience of the Headache Centre in Pavia

Medication-overuse headache (MOH) is one of the headache forms that most frequently prompts patients to consult a specialist headache centre. The prevalence of this form in the general population is approximately 1-2%. Around 40% of patients seen at headache centres present with a chronic form of he...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of headache and pain 2005-09, Vol.6 (4), p.307-309
Main Authors: Sances, Grazia, Ghiotto, Natascia, Loi, Marianna, Guaschino, Elena, Marchioni, Enrico, Catarci, Teresa, Nappi, Giuseppe
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Analgesics
Analgesics - adverse effects
Drug use
Female
Headache - chemically induced
Headache - drug therapy
Headache - prevention & control
Headache and Continuity in Health Care
Headaches
Humans
Italy
Male
Medical treatment
Middle Aged
Neurology - organization & administration
Patient Compliance
Program Evaluation
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Summary:Medication-overuse headache (MOH) is one of the headache forms that most frequently prompts patients to consult a specialist headache centre. The prevalence of this form in the general population is approximately 1-2%. Around 40% of patients seen at headache centres present with a chronic form of headache and 80% of this chronic headache patients make excessive use of symptomatic drugs. MOH shows a clinical improvement, accompanied by a reduction in the consumption of analgesic drugs, if patients are submitted to detoxification therapy. But detoxification is only the first stage in a long and complex course of care and global approach demands adequate follow-up visit to prevent early relapses. At the Headache Centre of the C. Mondino Institute of Neurology in Pavia, a course of care (CARE: ) has been developed for the complete management of patients with MOH both during Hospitalization and during the subsequent follow-up period. CARE: IS designed to trace the clinical, psychopathological and pharmacological profile of MOH in the short-, medium- and long-term; to look for factors possibility predictive of relapse; to assess the direct costs linked to overuse-headache in the year leading up to and following detoxification; and to evaluate disability, in terms of working days lost, before and after detoxification.
ISSN:1129-2369
1129-2377
DOI:10.1007/s10194-005-0216-8