Great that you have oxygen, the abort time seems a little long. How high a flow rate do you have on the regulator? 15 LPM is what we have found to be bare bones minimum for most, with some needing to go upwards of 45 LPM to get relief. Are you using a Non Re Breather Mask? Rebreathers and nasal canulas are not good.  I run 6-8 minutes on my aborts, from attack to completely pain free.

Has the doc discussed any other prevents with you? Verapamil, Lithium or Topomax? And have you ever tried the injectable imitrex?

Also, look into energy drinks, rock star, Red Bull, any containing caffiene and taurine, chugged at the first sign of an attack many can abort or at least really reduce their hits.

Welcome to the board!

Joe

I assume the Imitrex are pills. If so, change to injection; far faster acting; pill not well favored because it's action is too slow.

See the PDF file, below and read the entire version of this abstact.
==



Cluster headache.
From: Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or (Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases)
[Easy to read; one of the better overview articles I've seen. Suggest printing the full length article--link, line above--if you are serious about keeping a good medical library on the subject.]

Leroux E, Ducros A.

ABSTRACT: Cluster headache (CH) is a primary headache disease characterized by recurrent short-lasting attacks (15 to 180 minutes) of excruciating unilateral periorbital pain accompanied by ipsilateral autonomic signs (lacrimation, nasal congestion, ptosis, miosis, lid edema, redness of the eye). It affects young adults, predominantly males. Prevalence is estimated at 0.5-1.0/1,000. CH has a circannual and circadian periodicity, attacks being clustered (hence the name) in bouts that can occur during specific months of the year. ALCOHOL IS THE ONLY DIETARY TRIGGER OF CH, STRONG ODORS (MAINLY SOLVENTS AND CIGARETTE SMOKE) AND NAPPING MAY ALSO TRIGGER CH ATTACKS. During bouts, attacks may happen at precise hours, especially during the night. During the attacks, patients tend to be restless. CH may be episodic or chronic, depending on the presence of remission periods. CH IS ASSOCIATED WITH TRIGEMINOVASCULAR ACTIVATION AND NEUROENDOCRINE AND VEGETATIVE DISTURBANCES, HOWEVER, THE PRECISE CAUSATIVE MECHANISMS REMAIN UNKNOWN. Involvement of the hypothalamus (a structure regulating endocrine function and sleep-wake rhythms) has been confirmed, explaining, at least in part, the cyclic aspects of CH. The disease is familial in about 10% of cases. Genetic factors play a role in CH susceptibility, and a causative role has been suggested for the hypocretin receptor gene. Diagnosis is clinical. Differential diagnoses include other primary headache diseases such as migraine, paroxysmal hemicrania and SUNCT syndrome. At present, there is no curative treatment. There are efficient treatments to shorten the painful attacks (acute treatments) and to reduce the number of daily attacks (prophylactic treatments). Acute treatment is based on subcutaneous administration of sumatriptan and high-flow oxygen. Verapamil, lithium, methysergide, prednisone, greater occipital nerve blocks and topiramate may be used for prophylaxis. In refractory cases, deep-brain stimulation of the hypothalamus and greater occipital nerve stimulators have been tried in experimental settings.THE DISEASE COURSE OVER A LIFETIME IS UNPREDICTABLE. Some patients have only one period of attacks, while in others the disease evolves from episodic to chronic form.

PMID: 18651939 [PubMed]

"The Three Hour ones suck!"

I think I might get a bumper sticker made and see how many people honk!!!!

Hi Joe,
The O2 is supplied by UK NHS so I get what I'm given, having said that so far its been effective. What I really want is portable O2 cause at the moment I cant work
Garry

I'm a big believer on the water treatment, not a cure all by any means but certainly seems to lessen the hits. Hoping yours is winding down.

Joe

I agree with the water treatment. I only tried it when I discovered that being dehydrated made a brief attack come on. So I figured, if dehydration caused an attack, let's see what happens if we do superhydration, and sure enough, it eases the symptoms. Like you said, it doesn't kill the pain, but with the other abortives, it definitely helps.