Being There: Suicide Prevention as Highest Priority

Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias (TAC) are now more formally diagnosed: they include a suicide headache (cluster), hemicranias (paroxysmal and continua) that are nothing like migraine, and a headache that may occur 300 to 600 times in 10 minutesÑshort-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache attacks with conjunctival injection and tearingÊ(SUNCT)Êor with cranial autonomic symptomsÊ(SUNA). Diagnosing several of these may be simple; treatment of the suicide headache is not. Treatment of the hemicranias and the other TAC can be relatively simple, if the patient can utilize the single medication that stops and therefore confirms the diagnosis made. Treatment of the 4th TAC may also be relatively simple, but diagnostically more problematic. This course will review these TACs and their potential treatment.