Hormonal Interventions for Menstrual Migraines

Kathleen J. Chavanu, Dannielle C. O'Donnell
In: Pharmacotherapy: The Journal of Human Pharmacology and Drug Therapy · 2002 · vol. 22(11) , pp. 1442–1457 · doi:10.1592/phco.22.16.1442.33701 · PMID:12432971 · W2045274519
review OA: closed CC0
View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite, 2026-06-09 ⓘ

Hormonal interventions like oral contraceptives and estrogen therapy can effectively reduce the frequency and severity of menstrual migraines in women who do not respond to standard treatments.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

Menstrual migraines are a treatment challenge for both the migraineur and the health care professional. Although some women with menstrual migraines may respond to acute and preventive therapies for nonmenstrual migraines, others continue to suffer from refractory menstrual migraines. These women may respond to hormonal interventions, which may reduce the frequency of menstrual migraines, thereby lessening the need for abortive migraine therapies, decreasing migraine-related disability, and improving quality of life. Menstrual migraines have a distinct pathophysiology that differs from menstrual-related migraines. Published studies have shed light on the effectiveness of a variety of hormonal interventions, including oral contraceptives, which may be administered with an extended-dosing strategy; estrogen replacement therapy; selective estrogen receptor modifiers; danazol; and leuprolide.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Citation neighborhood (sparse)

Too few in-corpus citations on either side for a chart; here are the lists.

Cites (4)

References (37)

Source provenance

openalex
last seen: 2026-05-11T05:40:41.230350+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK