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Helping You Live Better
The Headache Toolbox
New delivery systems help build out the toolbox of headache treatments . By Jackie Walker Gibson
THE PRIMARY TREATMENT for headache is medication in pill form . But as many people with headache know , it ’ s not the only option , and it might not be the best option , depending on how pills react with your gastrointestinal ( GI ) tract .
“ People with migraine will manage multiple attacks of migraine over decades of time , so it is essential to understand that not all attacks of migraine are created equally ,” says Roger Cady , MD , associate executive chairman of the National Headache Foundation and founder and director of the Headache Care Center , Inc . in Springfield , Mo .
Dr . Cady notes that while some migraines are severe from the start , others develop more slowly . Some migraines are associated with severe symptoms such as nausea or vomiting and others with less intense symptoms . Some migraineurs have unique treatment needs because of their obligations and responsibilities that may lie ahead . “ Consequently it is important that migraineurs have the right therapeutic tools to match their treatment needs ,” he says . With seven triptans on the market , Dr . Cady notes that migraine patients often find themselves on a “ merry-go-round of switching from one pill to another in pursuit of successful migraine control . The reality is that what many patients with migraine need is not another pill but a better , more effective means of delivering their migraine medication .”
Nausea is a common symptom of migraine and also a common side effect of medication . According to the February 2012 issue of the journal Headache , 92 percent of migraineurs experience nausea during a migraine , and 31 percent of migraineurs report this symptom as interfering with their ability to take oral medications .
Fortunately , many new and novel products are available or being developed to meet migraineurs ’ needs .
Injectable medications provide one delivery system that may be prescribed to provide quick relief . The needleless injection — one new form of injectable approved by the FDA — propels medicine into the fat of the skin in one-tenth of a second , fast enough to push it through the skin but without the sting of a sharp needle .
Patches also bypass the GI tract , but their efficacy depends on the delivery method . Lidocaine patches are local anesthetics that ( like some topical creams ) can reduce pain in an area by temporarily dulling feeling . “ Lidocaine patches are not commonly used as a treatment for migraine ,” Dr . Cady says . “ They can be used to relieve muscle pain or skin sensitivity , but are not very
10 HEAD WISE | Volume 2 , Issue 2 • 2012