Observational studyHeadache2026
Reasons for patient reluctance to take preventive medications for migraine: Results of the OVERCOME (US) study.
Observational study in Headache, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
OBJECTIVES/
backgroundThis study was undertaken to evaluate patient reasons for nonadoption of migraine-preventive medications. Despite clear recommendations and eligibility criteria for migraine-preventive treatment by the American Headache Society and the availability of these treatments, many people with migraine are not taking appropriate preventive medications. Many are not seeking medical care in the first place, but even among those who are seeking medical care and have a diagnosis of migraine, the uptake of preventive medications remains low.
methodsThe OVERCOME (Observational Survey of the Epidemiology, Treatment, and Care of Migraine) study is an observational, longitudinal web-based survey conducted in more than 60,000 adults with migraine in the United States (US). The current analysis, a secondary post hoc analysis of the 2018-2020 baseline cross-sectional surveys, evaluated medication use in participants. In particular, the analysis investigates why some participants have never taken prescription medication for migraine prevention and examines how this group differs from those who are taking preventive medication, specifically in terms of disease severity and other patient-reported outcomes.
resultsOur findings revealed that among OVERCOME (US) participants who met criteria for migraine (n = 59,001), only approximately half (51.3%) had sought medical care for migraine in the previous 12 months, approximately one third (36.3%) had sought care and received a migraine diagnosis, and only 10% of participants had sought care, received a diagnosis of migraine, and were currently taking prescription medications for migraine prevention. Furthermore, among those who were eligible for migraine-preventive medication based on their headache frequency and associated disability (n = 22,249), 65.3% indicated they had never taken a preventive medication for migraine. The reasons for this were mostly medication-related (25.5% stated they were concerned about side effects, 23.3% said they did not like taking prescription medication, and 20.8% stated that their other medications worked well enough); however, there were also other reasons related to stigma, access, and communication with the health care provider that were noted by participants.
conclusionThis study highlights an important need for patient education, especially as many of these individuals who had never taken medications to prevent migraine reported experiencing ≥15 monthly headache days (25.3%), severe interictal burden (43.3%), and severe migraine-related disability (53.1%). We believe that these results may be of interest to health care providers who see people with migraine and help them better understand and anticipate their patients' educational needs regarding migraine prevention.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.