Posted by DocGreg on December 01, 1998 at 18:56:25:
In Reply to: Rebound Headaches posted by John L on December 01, 1998 at 14:48:48:
J,
I don't honestly believe that prednisone causes a "rebound" headache as some other drugs (such as fioricet...one of the worst), but rather I think that the dose is dropped before the underlying problem is resolved...and you get a breakthrough headache.
Prednisone is hard to deal with...and there are about as many ways to perscribe it as there are stars in the sky. 2 strong rules of thumb; 1) Never stop prednisone abruptly; and 2) uses longer than a couple of weeks starts to brind out the side effects.
Some people are really not able to come off larger doses of prednisone without their headaches returning. Prednisone taken every other day (say 60-80 every other day) can often be taken for longer periods of time without the side effects, while keeping the headaches down. If you are unable to taper down the prednisone, talk to your doctor about this.
I have said so on this board before, but I really hate fioricet. If taken more than a couple of times a week, it quickly causes you to change into a chronic headache state (not cluster headache...more migraine like). Use it sparingly. You haven't mentioned Imitrex, tried it yet?
Hope this helps
Greg