EAN 2024 | Opioid use in patients with medication overuse headache

Gisela Terwindt, MD, PhD, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands, highlights the need to avoid opioids as treatments for headache, referring to the opioid crisis in the USA as an example of the negative effects of opioid prescription. 13% of migraine patients in the Netherlands have used opioids, with some having used them preventatively, and 2% of those who have used opioids had not been prescribed them. Prof. Terwindt emphasizes that more education is needed about the effect of opioids and more needs to be done to ensure these patients have preventative treatments and do not feel the need to turn to opioids. This interview took place at the European Academy of Neurology (EAN) Annual Meeting 2024 in Helsinki, Finland.

These works are owned by Magdalen Medical Publishing (MMP) and are protected by copyright laws and treaties around the world. All rights are reserved.