Acute migraine treatment in emergency settings.

Background Acute migraine headaches can last from 4 hours to 3 days if untreated. Migraines often require bed rest, pain medications, and time off from work and other activities, thus reducing an individual’s productivity and quality of life. Seven percent of U.S. migraine patients reported using an ED or urgent care center for treatment within the previous 12 months. Of patients who use an ED for migraine treatment, 19 percent make multiple visits over the course of 1 year. Practice patterns of migraine treatment in the emergency setting vary in the United States. As many as 20 different agents are commonly used to treat acute migraines in the ED. A synthesis of the evidence from the clinical literature may inform treatment choices based on the balance of benefits and adverse effects of parenteral agents for treating acute migraine.