Lithium and clonazepam treatment of two cases with cluster headache

Authors: Takebayashi, Minoru¹; Fujikawa, Tokumi²; Kagaya, Ariyuki¹; Horiguchi, Jun¹; Yamawaki, Shigeto¹

Source: Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, Volume 53, Number 4, August 1999 , pp. 535-537(3)

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Abstract:

Patients with cluster headache are often treated with lithium. However, there are some patients who can not be fully treated with lithium alone. Two patients with cluster headache were treated with clonazepam, one of the most potent benzodiazepines. Lithium prolonged the period of remission, and the addition of clonazepam further prolonged it in case 1. Treatment with clonazepam reduced the symptoms in case 2, and when combined with lithium, the disorder went into remission after 6 months. These findings suggest that the combination of lithium and clonazepam may be effective in patients with cluster headache.

Keywords: clonazepam; cluster headache; lithium

Document Type: Short communication

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1819.1999.00573.x

Affiliations: 1: Department of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, Hiroshima University School of Medicine, Hiroshima and 2: National Sanatorium Kamo Hospital, Hiroshima, Japan

Publication date: 1999-08-01