Chronic cluster headache responding to gabapentin: a case report

Drug Treatment of Cluster Headache

Cluster headache belongs to the group of trigeminal autonomic headaches. This review summarizes drug therapy of cluster attacks and prophylactic treatment. Neurostimulation methods are not addressed. The therapy for acute cluster attacks includes inhalation of 100% oxygen, subcutaneous administration of sumatriptan, and intranasal application of sumatriptan or zolmitriptan. Bridging therapy, which is used until oral prophylactic therapy is effective, is performed either with oral prednisolone or with a pharmacological block of the major occipital nerves. Best documented drugs for preventive treatment of cluster headache are verapamil and lithium, and possibly effective drugs are gabapentin, topiramate, divalproex sodium, and melatonin. The efficacy of monoclonal antibodies to the calcitonin gene-related peptide so far has been only demonstrated for episodic cluster headache. Several drug therapies are being investigated including ketamine, onabotulinumtoxinA, lysergic acid, and sodium oxybate.

Refining the Benefit/Risk Profile of Anti-Epileptic Drugs in Headache Disorders

Anti-epileptic drugs are among the most effective drugs for migraine prophylaxis, and will likely continue to have a role even as new therapies emerge. Topiramate and valproate are effective for the preventive treatment of migraine, and other medications such as gabapentin or lamotrigine may have a role in the treatment of those with allodynia or frequent aura, respectively. Oxcarbazepine, carbamazepine, phenytoin, gabapentin, and others may alleviate pain in trigeminal neuralgia. While many anti-epileptic drugs can be effective in those with migraine or other headaches, most of these agents can potentially cause serious side effects. In particular, valproate, topiramate, carbamazepine, and phenytoin may lead to adverse outcomes for infants of exposed mothers. Valproate should not be given to women of childbearing potential for migraine prevention.

The Neuropharmacology of Cluster Headache and other Trigeminal Autonomic Cephalalgias

Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias (TACs) are a group of primary headaches including cluster headache (CH), paroxysmal hemicrania (PH) and short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT). Another form, hemicrania continua (HC), is also included this group due to its clinical and pathophysiological similarities. CH is the most common of these syndromes, the others being infrequent in the general population. The pathophysiology of the TACs has been partly elucidated by a number of recent neuroimaging studies, which implicate brain regions associated with nociception (pain matrix). In addition, the hypothalamic activation observed in the course of TAC attacks and the observed efficacy of hypothalamic neurostimulation in CH patients suggest that the hypothalamus is another key structure. Hypothalamic activation may indeed be involved in attack initiation, but it may also lead to a condition of central facilitation underlying the recurrence of pain episodes. The TACs share many pathophysiological features, but are characterised by differences in attack duration and frequency, and to some extent treatment response. Although alternative strategies for the TACs, especially CH, are now emerging (such as neurostimulation techniques), this review focuses on the available pharmacological treatments complying with the most recent guidelines. We discuss the clinical efficacy and tolerability of the currently used drugs. Due to the low frequency of most TACs, few randomised controlled trials have been conducted. The therapies of choice in CH continue to be the triptans and oxygen for acute treatment, and verapamil and lithium for prevention, but promising results have recently been obtained with novel modes of administration of the triptans and other agents, and several other treatments are currently under study. Indomethacin is extremely effective in PH and HC, while antiepileptic drugs (especially lamotrigine) appear to be increasingly useful in SUNCT. We highlight the need for appropriate studies investigating treatments for these rare, but lifelong and disabling conditions.

Cluster headache: focus on emerging therapies

Cluster headache is a strictly unilateral headache that occurs in association with cranial autonomic features. It is an excruciating syndrome and is probably one of the most painful conditions known to mankind with female patients describing each attack as being worse than childbirth. In most patients, it has a striking circannual and circadian periodicity. This disorder has a highly stereotyped clinical phenotype and responds to specific therapies, thereby underlying the importance of distinguishing it from other primary headache syndromes. In this review, the clinical manifestations, differential diagnosis, diagnostic workup and treatment options for this syndrome have been outlined.

Italian guidelines for primary headaches: 2012 revised version

The first edition of the Italian diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines for primary headaches in adults was published in J Headache Pain 2(Suppl. 1):105–190 (2001). Ten years later, the guideline committee of the Italian Society for the Study of Headaches (SISC) decided it was time to update therapeutic guidelines. A literature search was carried out on Medline database, and all articles on primary headache treatments in English, German, French and Italian published from February 2001 to December 2011 were taken into account. Only randomized controlled trials (RCT) and meta-analyses were analysed for each drug. If RCT were lacking, open studies and case series were also examined. According to the previous edition, four levels of recommendation were defined on the basis of levels of evidence, scientific strength of evidence and clinical effectiveness. Recommendations for symptomatic and prophylactic treatment of migraine and cluster headache were therefore revised with respect to previous 2001 guidelines and a section was dedicated to non-pharmacological treatment. This article reports a summary of the revised version published in extenso in an Italian version.

Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias. Part 1: cluster headache

Cluster headache is characterized by severe, strictly unilateral pain attacks lasting 15 to 180 minutes localized to orbital, temporal, and midface areas accompanied by ipsilateral autonomic features. It represents 1 of 3 primary headaches classified as trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias. While its prevalence is small, it is not uncommon for cluster headache patients to present at dental offices seeking relief for their pain. It is important for oral health care providers to recognize cluster headache and render an accurate diagnosis. This will avoid the pitfall of implementing unnecessary and inappropriate traditional dental treatments in hopes of alleviating this neurovascular pain. The following article is part 1 of a review on trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias and focuses on cluster headache. Aspects of cluster headache including its prevalence and incidence, genetics, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, classification and variants, diagnosis, medical management, and dental considerations are discussed.

Antiepileptic drugs for the treatment of chronic and episodic cluster headache: a review

Cluster headache needs to be rapidly diagnosed and effectively managed, as the individual headache attacks that are characteristic of this disorder are excruciatingly painful and debilitating. Preventive therapies are necessary to reduce the frequency of attacks during the cluster period. However, preventive therapy for this disorder is limited by a lack of controlled evidence of efficacy and the potential for systemic toxicity. Recent progress has been made in understanding both the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying cluster headache and the mechanisms of action of the antiepileptic drug class for the treatment of primary headache syndromes. Newly available preliminary clinical trial data evaluating antiepileptic drugs for the prevention of cluster headache suggest that these agents may be effective and that further evaluation in randomized, placebo-controlled trials is warranted.

Trigeminal-autonomic headaches in daily clinical practice

Following the revised International Headache Society criteria, a group of short-lasting headaches associated with autonomic symptoms, the so called trigeminal autonomic cephalgias, were newly recognized. The trigeminal autonomic cephalgias include cluster headache, paroxysmal hemicranias and a syndrome involving short-lasting unilateral neuralform cephalgias with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT) syndrome. In all of these syndromes, the half-sided head pain and cranial autonomic symptoms are prominent. All of the trigeminal autonomic cephalgias differ in duration, frequency and rhythmicity of the attacks, the intensity of pain and autonomic symptoms, as well as treatment options. This review gives a brief clinical description of the headache disorders and recent pathophysiological findings, as well as an overview of the treatment of cluster headache, paroxysmal hemicranias and SUNCT syndrome.

Cluster headache: a case-based review of diagnostic and treatment approaches

Cluster headache is one of the worst pain syndromes known to mankind. Medical treatment is highly effective in most cases, but because cluster headache is rare, many physicians are not familiar with the details of its management. This article reviews three common presentations of cluster headache to illustrate standard approaches to its treatment. Algorithms for acute, preventive, and transitional (bridge) therapy are provided.

Gabapentin-responsive idiopathic stabbing headache

Idiopathic stabbing headache (ISH) is defined as the occurrence of short-lasting, painful jabs, restricted to the ophthalmic division of the trigeminal nerve. It is closely related to other forms of headache (such as migraine and tension-type headache) and has been reported among all age groups, including children and adolescents. As pathogenic mechanisms of the disease remain unclear, management decisions are empirical and limited to few options. Classically, indomethacin has been considered the first option, but therapeutic failure occurs in up to 35% of cases. In this setting, we report four patients with young-onset indomethacin-resistant ISH which had good responses to gabapentin and discuss the use of this drug in the presenting situation.

Management of trigeminal autonomic cephalgias and hemicrania continua

The trigeminal autonomic cephalgias (TACs) are a group of primary headache disorders characterised by unilateral trigeminal distribution pain that occurs in association with ipsilateral cranial autonomic features. This group of headache disorders includes cluster headache, paroxysmal hemicrania and short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache attacks with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT syndrome). Although hemicrania continua has previously been classified amongst the TACs, its nosological status remains unclear. Despite their similarities, these disorders differ in their clinical manifestations and response to therapy, thus underpinning the importance of recognising them. We have outlined the clinical manifestations, differential diagnoses, diagnostic workup and the treatment options for each of these syndromes.

Cluster headache mechanism and treatment

There have been remarkable strides in the last decade in unraveling the mystery of primary headache disorders, such as migraine and cluster headache. The vascular theory has been superseded by the neurovascular phenomena which seems to be the permissive triggering factor in migraine and cluster headache. This has been achieved through new imaging modalities, such as positron imaging tomography and functional magnetic resonance imaging. Prior to these imaging techniques, it was impossible to study primary headache disorders since they have no structural basis. There is now an increasing body of evidence for the brain to be involved primarily in cluster and migraine and the vessel dilatation as an epiphenomenon. There are also better strategies for treating cluster headache. Most of the targets for abortive treatment remain vascular, however, for prevention neuromodulators, such as antiepileptics may be used in addition to calcium channel blockers. This review will discuss the treatment strategies based upon the pathophysiological basis for this disorder.

Gabapentin: pharmacology and its use in pain management

Although its exact mode of action is not known, gabapentin appears to have a unique effect on voltage-dependent calcium ion channels at the postsynaptic dorsal horns and may, therefore, interrupt the series of events that possibly leads to the experience of a neuropathic pain sensation. Gabapentin is especially effective at relieving allodynia and hyperalgesia in animal models. It has been shown to be efficacious in numerous small clinical studies and case reports in a wide variety of pain syndromes. Gabapentin has been clearly demonstrated to be effective for the treatment of neuropathic pain in diabetic neuropathy and postherpetic neuralgia. This evidence, combined with its favourable side-effect profile in various patient groups (including the elderly) and lack of drug interactions, makes it an attractive agent. Therefore, gabapentin should be considered an important drug in the management of neuropathic pain syndromes.