Neurology - Headache Medicine
A 38-year-old female presented with frequent unilateral headaches. She experienced blurriness in her right visual field for 20 to 30 minutes before the onset of pain. These events had been present intermittently for the past 2 years, during which she had 5 to 7 attacks per month. Over the past 4 months, she had attacks on 18 to 20 days per month with no findings on her neurologic exam. In the past, her headache attacks had been treated with 60 mg of propranolol and 40 mg of nortriptyline as prophylactic medications. She discontinued their use due to a lack of efficacy and the inability to tolerate side effects, such as dizziness and fatigue. She had used zolmitriptan for headache rescue but stopped this medication because of uncomfortable chest tightness and nausea. Since then, she has taken acetaminophen/aspirin/caffeine and ibuprofen as needed but noted minimal pain relief. She recently initiated galcanezumab as a prophylactic therapy and subsequently had a significant decrease in headache days per month. She also reported a reduction in the severity of her attacks and, in the 4 months after beginning galcanezumab, she only needed to take ibuprofen for headaches 8 times. She had not been required to take her new rescue medicine, eletriptan hydrobromide, since beginning galcanezumab because her attacks had been of lesser severity. She noted a dramatic improvement in her quality of life and ability to partake in daily activities. The correct diagnosis is crucial for her continued care.
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