Rebound headaches

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Risk factors

By Mayo Clinic staff

Risk factors for developing rebound headaches include:

  • History of chronic headaches. Anyone who has a history of migraines, tension-type headaches or other chronic headaches is at risk of developing rebound headaches from the overuse of pain relievers.
  • Frequent use of headache medications. Your risk increases if you use combination analgesics, ergotamine or triptans 10 or more days a month or simple analgesics more than 15 days a month — especially if this regular use continues for three or more months.

Rebound headaches aren't typically an issue for people who don't experience frequent headaches and use pain medications on a daily basis to treat other conditions such as arthritis.

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References
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  2. Dodick DW, et al. How clinicians can detect, prevent and treat medication overuse headache. Cephalgia. 2008;28:1209.
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  12. Swanson JW (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Sept. 10, 2009.
  13. Bigal ME, et al. Acute migraine medications and evolution from episodic to chronic migraine: A longitudinal population-based study. Headache. 2008;48:1157.
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Dec. 8, 2009

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