Sumatriptan as Treatment for Moderate to Severe Post-Traumatic Headache

Detailed Summary

This phase II evaluation of sumatriptan as a treatment for post traumatic headache (PTH) will examine the methods and approach necessary to take the next step to a phase III trial. The sample will include 40 persons with mild complicated, moderate or severe TBI who will be recruited from patients discharged from the acute rehabilitation unit as well as outpatient clinics and the community who are between 3 and 24 months of injury and will be followed over 3 months. The investigators plan to enroll those who have moderate to severe headache with frequency of at least four and up to a maximum of fifteen total headache days per month and at least three months after discharge from hospital. The investigators will use headache diaries to track the headaches for a month. If subjects still have significant headache, the investigators will instruct them in the use of sumatriptan 100 mg. to treat headaches. The subjects will continue to keep daily headache diaries. The investigators will evaluate them at baseline, Day 30 and Day 90. Each subject will receive weekly telephone follow up calls from the research staff. The investigators will measure pain severity, duration, recurrence of headaches, and side effects and how well persons with TBI can use headache diaries.

Study Details

Timeline

Interventions