The Positive Impact of Integrative Medicine in the Treatment of Recalcitrant Chronic daily Headache: A Series of Case Reports
Abstract
People who suffer from recalcitrant chronic daily headache (CDH)-a primary, episodic headache occurring at least 15 days per month, and lasting four or more hours per day for at least three consecutive months(1)-have generally tried many pain relief medications with few positive results. These patients often continue to add more and more medications and travel from clinician to clinician seeking help, without relief. Patients with recalcitrant CDH are often caught in a vicious cycle of increasing pain which results in a substantial impact from their disease on productivity and quality of life. Studies in the United States and Europe indicate that four to five percent of the general population has recalcitrant CDH,(2) which encompasses transformed migraine and chronic tension-type headache.(3) The disability associated with recalcitrant CDH is substantial, as patients have a significantly diminished quality of life and mental health, as well as impaired physical, social, and occupational functioning.(4,5) Research shows that CDH may not be treated effectively with conventional medicine (CM). Integrative medicine (IM) offers a complex, personalized intervention necessary to treat CDH. Many integrative therapies have shown benefit, effectiveness, cost effectiveness and low side effect profile in patients with both chronic headache and chronic pain.(6-17) Yet even within the IM community, clinicians often struggle with the balance between providing evidence-based therapy and…
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Evidence Hub reads this as a case report, done in people. Its evidence level is 5 of 5 (Very low · case / narrative / animal / in vitro / in silico). Case reports, narrative reviews, and animal, cell or computer-model studies give the weakest evidence for human health.
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