Medication overuse in children and adolescents
Amy A Gelfand1, Peter J Goadsby
1UCSF Headache Center, 1701 Divisadero St. Suite 480, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA, GelfandA@neuropeds.ucsf.edu.
Current Pain and Headache Reports
|June 6, 2014
Summary
Medication overuse is common in pediatric headaches, potentially worsening symptoms. This review explores predicting responses to medication withdrawal and management strategies for children and adolescents.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Headache Medicine
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Medication overuse is prevalent in children and adolescents with primary headache disorders.
- In adults, medication overuse increases headache frequency and diminishes treatment efficacy, likely impacting pediatric populations similarly.
- Withdrawal of overused medications is a standard recommendation, though its success in improving headache frequency varies among patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current knowledge on predicting patient responses to medication withdrawal in pediatric headache.
- To offer practical strategies for managing medication overuse in children and adolescents experiencing primary headaches.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of studies on medication overuse in pediatric primary headaches.
- Analysis of factors influencing response to medication withdrawal.
- Synthesis of clinical management approaches for pediatric medication overuse headache.
Main Results:
- Predicting response to medication withdrawal in pediatric headache patients remains challenging.
- Evidence suggests that not all patients experience improved headache frequency after withdrawal.
- Identifying predictive factors is crucial for optimizing treatment outcomes.
Conclusions:
- Effective management of medication overuse in pediatric headaches requires personalized approaches.
- Further research is needed to identify reliable predictors of successful medication withdrawal.
- Developing targeted strategies can improve outcomes for children and adolescents with medication overuse headache.
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