[Prozac treatment of chronic tension headache]

The paper summarizes the experience of therapy of chronic tension type headache (TTH) with prozac (fluoxetine)--a selective serotonine reuptake inhibitor. The data are presented concerning clinical psychologic examination of 20 outpatients with chronic TTH both before and after therapy with prozac in daily dose of 20 mg during 6 weeks. Background study of the patients revealed severe depression (according to Beck's and SCL-90 scales), anxiety (Spilberger scale) and alexitimia (Toronto scale). Before the treatment, a frequency of TTH attacks was at least four times a week, the intensivity was equal to 8.9 scores according to visual analogous scale. Together with a headache there were psychopathologic and psychoautonomic manifestations. After the course of therapy the headaches disappeared completely in 25%, while considerable improvement was observed in 75% of the patients. The levels of depression, anxiety, somatization have decreased significantly too. Side effects as well as withdrawal syndrome weren't found. The role of depression in formation of chronic TTH, as well as the role of alixetimia in formation of somatizated variation of the depression were considered.