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- Despite guidelines that recommend against opioid use as first-line treatment for migraine headaches, meperidine (Demerol) is still administered in 36% of all migraine headache ED visits in the U.S.
- Meperidine's lack of efficacy, adverse effects such of seizure, and toxic metabolic accumulation all contribute to its use for migraine headaches being discouraged.
- A recent meta-analysis out of New York again supports the avoidance of using meperidine for migraine headaches, and instead, encourages clinicians to use anti-emetic and dihydroergotamine regimens.
References
- Friedman, et al. "The Relative Efficacy of Meperidine for the Treatment of Acute Migraine: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials." Annals of Emergency Medicine. December 2008; Vol. 52, No. 6; 705-13.