What is hope? The dictionary definition of hope is ‘a feeling of desire for a certain thing to happen.’ What does that mean to a person with chronic headache? It is neither the expectation or wish that their pain will ease or end. Rather it is allowing for the possibility that what is desired may … Continue reading Hope and chronic headache
I did my first post about Botox for teens under 18 in July 2019, 3 years ago! My intention was to review our data and prepare for publication a paper supporting the use of Botox for those under age 18. The more academic publications there are available, the better to make the case with insurance … Continue reading Update on Botox for teens under 18
Getting Ahead of Pediatric Headaches: A comprehensive guide for Nurse Practitioners to manage headaches in children and adolescents I started my blog as a way to communicate to pediatric providers about the care of pediatric patients with all kinds of headaches. Over time, I decided to turn it into a book. I felt that the … Continue reading My book is available!!!
The pandemic and its impact on life and work have consumed most of us during the past 6 months. So many choices and many not in our power to make. All vacations cancelled-no trip to Africa this June, no headache conference. Limited in-person interaction both at work and in life. Lack of control over most … Continue reading Managing headaches during the pandemic, part 2
In thinking about the upcoming American Headache Society Annual Scientific Meeting in June, our clinic staff has been thinking about what interesting or new information we could offer to present at the conference. This is an important conference in the headache world, a mixture of scientific research and real-world clinical information and ideas. We were … Continue reading Interesting clinical updates on headache
Well, it has been just 1 year since the first anti-CGRP medication came on the market, approved by the FDA for both episodic and chronic migraine for patients over the age of 18 years. I have heard from adult providers that these medications have been really helpful for their patients, especially with chronic migraine. We … Continue reading What’s the deal with these new migraine medications?
So your patient has developed chronic migraine, which is defined as 3-4 migraine per week, 15 migraine days per month, and is predictably miserable. Developing chronic migraine does happen in pediatrics, but it happens much more often in older teens and adults. You’ve done what you could to prevent it from happening: did a course … Continue reading Chronic migraine, what to do?
So when does episodic migraine transform into chronic migraine? Well, it’s a matter of frequency. The International Headache Society defines chronic migraine as more than 15 headache days per month over a three month period of which more than eight are migrainous, in the absence of medication over use (2-3+ times per week). Often your … Continue reading When migraine turns chronic
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