Health Promotion and Maintenance Q 135
You are creating a teaching plan for a patient with newly diagnosed migraine headaches. Which key items should be included in the teaching plan? Select all that apply.
A. Avoid foods that contain tyramine, such as alcohol and aged cheese.
B. Avoid drugs such as Tagamet, nitroglycerin and Nifedipine.
C. Abortive therapy is aimed at eliminating the pain during the aura.
D. A potential side effect of medications is rebound headache.
E. Complementary therapies such as relaxation may be helpful.
F. Continue taking estrogen as prescribed by your physician.
Correct Answer: A, B, C, D, & E.
The client should be counseled on the food and drugs that are allowed. He should also be educated about the side effects of the medications given. Methods of distraction from pain should also be included in the teaching plan.
Option A: One explanation is that it causes nerve cells in the brain to release the chemical norepinephrine. Having higher levels of tyramine in the system — along with an unusual level of brain chemicals — can cause changes in the brain that lead to headaches.
Option B: Oral contraceptives and vasodilators, such as nitroglycerin, can aggravate migraines. Dilation of cerebral arteries causes the commonly reported side effect of migraine-type headache.
Option C: Abortive therapy should be used as early as possible in the course of a migraine. Combination analgesics containing aspirin, caffeine, and acetaminophen are an effective first-line abortive treatment for migraines. Ibuprofen at standard doses is effective for acute migraine treatment.
Option D: Medication overuse headaches or rebound headaches are caused by regular, long-term use of medication to treat headaches, such as migraines. Pain relievers offer relief for occasional headaches. But if one takes them more than a couple of days a week, they may trigger medication overuse headaches.
Option E: Complementary therapies are add-on therapies meant to be used along with traditional treatment, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Massage, spinal manipulation, and acupuncture are examples of complementary therapies that may be beneficial for people with migraines.
Option F: Medications such as estrogen supplements may actually trigger a migraine headache attack. Fluctuations in estrogen, such as before or during menstrual periods, pregnancy, and menopause, seem to trigger headaches in many women.