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Several older reports have suggested an association between dry eye disease (DED) and migraine headaches. Researchers at the Univercity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill just published a large and convincing study confirming...

Frovatriptan (Frova) is one of seven drugs in the family of triptans, drugs used to abort a migraine attack. The first drug to receive approval in 1992 was sumatriptan (Imitrex) in an injection form, followed by tablets and nasal spray...

A study just published in Neurology by the MEGASTROKE project of the International Stroke Genetics Consortium found that “genetically higher serum magnesium concentrations are associated with a reduced risk of...

Fremanezumab (Ajovy) is one of the three drugs in the family of CGRP monoclonal antibodies that have been approved for the prevention of migraine headaches. Fremanezumab was approved by the FDA last September...

Having conducted and published research on magnesium and seeing dramatic improvement from magnesium in many of my patients, I try to write about magnesium at least once a year. Up to half of migraine sufferers are...

Flurbiprofen is just another nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID), which is reflected in the name of its branded version – Ansaid. All NSAIDs can relieve acute pain of migraine and some have been proven to prevent...

Tosymra is a product that uses a novel way to deliver sumatriptan through the nasal passages. Unlike other nasal formulations of sumatriptan, Tosymra uses proprietary technology, Intravail, which enhances the absorption...

Fluvoxamine (Luvox) is one of the drugs in the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. Unlike other SSRIs, which are approved for the treatment of anxiety and depression, it is approved for the treatment of obsessive...

Flunarizine (Sibelium) is a calcium channel blocker approved for the preventive treatment of migraines in most countries, except for the US and Japan. In many countries, flunarizine is considered to be a first-line drug for...

I’ve given myself an injection of Ajovy in November and December with some improvement and without constipation which I had from Aimovig. However, Ajovy did not prevent all of my migraines, especially those caused...

Antidepressants are widely used for the preventive treatment of migraine headaches. However, some types of antidepressants are better for this purpose than other. Fluoxetine (Prozac, Sarafem) was the first drug in the...

Red wine is a common trigger for migraines, although we still don’t know the cause or why red wine is worse than white. I was just interviewed for this article in the WSJ along with my friend Mo Levin of the UCSF headache clinic...

Estrogen can be an effective agent for the treatment of menstrual migraines. Many women report that their migraines tend to occur before or during their period and sometimes with ovulation. For some women menstruation...

Erenumab (Aimovig) was the first drug in the family of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) approved for the prevention of migraine headaches. CGRP is a substance released during a migraine...

A typical migraine aura consists of a visual disturbance (partial loss of vision, flickering lights, zigzags, etc) which lasts 15 to 60 minutes and precedes the headache. Auras can also occur without a headache. Auras occurs in 15 to 20%...

Fremanezumab (Ajovy) is the second CGRP monoclonal antibody to become after the introduction of erenumab (Aimovig) and it has some differentiating features. I injected myself with Aimovig twice and was able to drink more wine...

Eletriptan (Relpax) is one of seven triptans approved for the treatment of an acute migraine. While all triptans are similar (but not identical) to each other in their indications, contraindications, side effects and drug interactions, some...

Duloxetine (Cymbalta) is an antidepressant in the family of serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). Unlike the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as fluoxetine (Prozac), escitalopram (Lexapro) and...

Droperidol (Inapsine) is not a phenothiazine, but is structurally very similar to this class of anti-nausea and anti-psychotic drugs. It also has similar properties of relieving nausea and being a major tranquilizer. And just like phenothiazines...

Doxepin (Sinequan) is a tricyclic antidepressant and all drugs in this category (amitriptyline, nortriptyline, desipramine, protriptyline) appear to be effective for the prevention of migraine headaches. Only a single small trial...

Domperidone (Motilium) is not a champagne (that would be Dom Perignon and it can give you a headache) but an excellent nausea medication which is often used for the treatment of nausea associated with migraines. It is available...

Divalproex sodium (Depakote) is one of two epilepsy drugs that are also approved by the FDA for the preventive treatment of migraine headaches (the other one is topiramate, or Topamax). It was approved by the FDA in 1983 to treat...

Dihydroergotamine (DHE-45) when given intravenously (IV) is considered to be the most effective migraine medication. It was introduced in 1943 and has been the go-to drug for migraines that do not respond to other medications. We usually...

Diclofenac (Cambia, Voltaren) is one of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) used for the treatment of migraine headaches. Cambia, which contains 50 mg of powdered diclofenac, is specifically approved by the...

Dichloralphenazone is one of three ingredients in the headache drug, Midrin. The other two ingredients are isometheptene, a drug that constricts blood vessels and acetaminophen. Midrin actually is a combination of...

Desvenlafaxine (Pristiq) is an antidepressant in the family of serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as fluoxetine (Prozac) and escitalopram...

Desipramine (Norpramin) belongs to the family of tricyclic antidepressants which have been proven to be effective for the treatment of various pain syndromes and for the prevention of migraine headaches. Desipramine is used...

Celecoxib (Celebrex) is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that belongs to a subclass of selective COX-2 inhibitors. This subclass of drugs tends to be safer on the stomach compared to aspirin, naproxen (Aleve), ibuprofen...

We’ve been prescribing medical marijuana for migraines and other painful conditions since it was legalized in the state of New York four years ago. While it does not seem to help most of our patients, it does benefit a significant...