Managing external cold-stimulus headache with preventive naproxen

Abstract

The management of external cold-stimulus headache has previously focused on trigger avoidance, which can be an impractical and sometimes impossible solution. We describe the case of a 20-year-old woman who presented with a typical example of external cold-stimulus headache, and in whom a preventive regime of naproxen taken 30 min prior to cold exposure was associated with reliable prevention of cold-induced headache symptoms. This could be an effective strategy for managing patients with cold-stimulus headache for whom cold triggers cannot be avoided.