Preventive treatment is taken before a migraine starts and recommended when the frequency of a migraine increases to a significant level to a point where it starts affecting work, personal and social life. The frequency for preventive treatment is 4 migraine attacks per month. Drugs are taken daily to reduce the number of migraine attacks and reduce the intensity of pain.
Preventive treatment is also suggested when the patient is suffering from rare forms of a migraine like Basilar type or Hemiplegic migraine even though the migraine attacks are less frequent. In some cases, when the response to acute treatment is meagre, then the preventive treatment is suggested. Since many migraine disorders are more chronic, treatment with preventive agents regularly offers the best help to sufferers, but finding an agent that has average reactions and is effective involves an experimentation process. It is normally best and safe to trial one medicine at a time, albeit a few drugs function admirably together in low measurements.
Beta blockers are also known as beta-adrenergic blocking agents, these are used to treat a variety of conditions like high blood pressure, glaucoma and migraines. These were initially developed to treat patients with high blood pressure but have been found to be effective in the stoppage of migraines. Read more about it here in the article – Beta Blockers
Botox, also called as Botulinum toxin type A has been approved by FDA in 2010 to treat a wide range of problems like chronic migraine headaches, eye muscle disorders and muscle stiffness. Botulinum toxin is produced by Clostridium botulinum bacteria.Read more about it here in the article – Botox
A few medications initially created to treat epilepsy have been observed to be valuable in the preventative treatment of a migraine. They seem to act in a migraine by focusing on one or more destinations in the brain, adjusting transmission of neurologic electrical signals. Read more about it here in the article – Anti-Seizure drugs
Antidepressants are drugs used for the treatment of depressive disorder, can be effective in preventing migraine headaches. Antidepressants impact the activity of neurotransmitters in the brain since neurotransmitters are associated with migraines it is believed to prevent migraine headaches. Read more about it here in the article – Antidepressants
Calcium Channel Blockers or Calcium Antagonists are used to treat a variety of conditions like hypertension, migraines and Raynaud’s disease. Calcium channel blockers prevent calcium from entering walls of the heart and blood vessel walls, resulting in lower blood pressure, they relax and widen blood vessels by affecting the muscle cells in the arterial walls. Read more about it here in the article – Calcium Channel Blockers
The nerves that run from the top of the spinal cord at the base of the neck up through the scalp are known as the occipital nerves. There are two types of optical nerves, the lesser occipital nerve and the greater occipital nerve. It is the greater occipital nerve that is treated in preventative measures for a migraine. Read more about it here in the article – Occipital Nerve Stimulation