Topiramate in the treatment of refractory chronic daily headache. An open trial

Chronic daily headache (CDH) is a debilitating disorder that becomes a treatment challenge in patients refractory to the treatment. We hereby report our experience with topiramate treatment in patients with refractory CDH. The study design was a prospective, protocol–based follow–up and retrospective analysis of headache diaries. We treated with topiramate at slowly increased moderate increments 11 CDH patients who were refractory to multiple previous treatments. Topiramate treatment was effective in 7 (64%) patients. The treatment resulted in a 66% (median) decrease of the headache days per week and a significant decrease in headache severity, a reduction of the headache hours per day, and weekly analgesic consumption. These effects continued for an average follow–up of 8±4 months. The average effective dose was 100 mg/day. Slowly increasing the drug at moderate increments resulted in high tolerability of topiramate. We found topiramate to be an effective long–standing treatment option for patients with refractory CDH. Slow increments of the dosage contributed to high tolerability of the drug.