Headache in the Use and Withdrawal of Opiates and Other Associated Substances of Abuse

The incidence and character of headache were retrospectively studied in 40 opiate addicts and 40 control subjects. The relationships between headache and use and withdrawal of opiates or other associated substances of abuse were investigated. In the opiate-dependent patients, the effects of opiate intake and withdrawal on headache were also investigated during detoxification treatment. A higher (p less than 0.001) incidence of headache was found in the opiate addicts (60%), particularly those with a longer history of addiction, than in the control subjects. A history of different types of headache (tension type headache, migraine-like headaches), which seemed respectively to be associated with the use of certain types of heroin, cocaine intake, and opiate withdrawal, was reported by the addicts who suffered from headache. Out of the 24 patients who completed the detoxification therapy, a migraine-like headache occurred in 37.5% of the subjects after opiate withdrawal.