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Chronic daily headache with medication overuse: predictors of outcome 1 year after withdrawal therapy
Author(s) -
Bøe M. G.,
Salvesen R.,
Mygland Å.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
european journal of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.881
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1468-1331
pISSN - 1351-5101
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2009.02571.x
Subject(s) - medicine , drug withdrawal , physical therapy , quality of life (healthcare) , anesthesia , psychiatry , drug , nursing
Background and purpose: We examined prospectively the results of withdrawal therapy in 80 patients with probable medication overuse headache. The aim was to identify baseline patient characteristics that might predict outcome after 1 year (end of study). Methods: We classified patients according to results of withdrawal therapy measured as the improvement of headache days (HD) from baseline to end of study. Results: Thirty‐six per cent (29/80) had at least 50% improvement. Sixty‐four per cent (51/80) had <50% improvement, and among these, 30% (24/80) had <10% improvement. The following baseline characteristics were associated with poor outcome of withdrawal therapy: use of codeine‐containing drugs, low self‐reported sleep quality, and high self‐reported bodily pain as measured by the quality of life tool SF‐36. Conclusion: Before suggesting withdrawal therapy, one should probably pay more close attention to sleep problems.