Saturday, November 9, 2013

Cluster headaches


What drug do you recommend for my cluster headaches?

Cluster headaches can be agonizingly painful. Unfortunately, many people who develop cluster headaches do not seek the right treatment. The one class of drugs that has been shown to be very effective for these headaches is the triptans. The triptans are available as a pill, nasal spray and can even be injected subcutaneously.  Evidence indicates that subcutaneous and intranasal formulations of sumatriptan and zolmitriptan work well. Sumatriptan 6 mg subcutaneously or zolmitriptan 10 mg taken intranasally works in most people. The drugs work almost instantly and the headache intensity is reduced by 80% in most cases. The sumatriptans are safe, and much more convenient than carrying oxygen tanks. The only downside to these drugs is the expense.

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