More than 30 million Americans suffer from Migraines and most often, when treatment is sought, medication is prescribed. While these preventative and therapeutic drugs such as Imitrex and Depakote can be beneficial, they may also be accompanied by adverse side effects, including rebound headaches. Rebound headaches occur in patients that suffer from other types of headaches but the disorder transforms over time from an infrequent occurrence to a painful, daily event. 10 Ibuprofen per day may not keep the doctor away. Find out what your first step should be to rid yourself of these headaches and get on the road to a pain free life. 

According to the American Medical Association, more than 18% of women suffer from migraines. This statistic climbs to greater than 22% for pregnant women. Prescription drugs are the most commonly used prevention method. Unfortunately, many pharmaceutical options, such as valproate also present adverse side effects including the increased risk of birth defects.

In February, 2010, the FDA issued a reminder about the heightened risk of neural tube defects in babies exposed in-utero to medications that contain valproate. Valproate therapy, initially devised as a treatment for epilepsy, is frequently used for migraine and bipolar disorder. The average rate of birth defects among US newborns is approximately 1 in 1,500 but children born to mothers that used medications such as Depakote, Depacon, and Stavzor resulted in a birth defect rate of 1 in 20. The rate of neural tube defects in children exposed to valproate during the 1st trimester is approximately 80 times higher than that of the general US population.

All of these migraine medications were prescribed for one patient. Prescription drugs are the most commonly used migraine preventative. Tylenol, Maxalt, Imitrex, Amerge. The list is seemingly never ending. Unfortunately, some pharmaceutical options also present adverse side effects including increased risk of birth defects.