"The headache from hell" - it sounds like the sensationalist title of a horror film! But anyone who is one of migraine's unfortunate victims will confirm that this title fits the film of their own lives perfectly. Migraine is anything but a slight indisposition which is easily coped with in the same way as a cold. It may not be as acutely life-threatening, but nevertheless it can have a serious impact on the quality of life, or even on someone's whole lifestyle. Anyone who suffers from migraine, and is therefore often unable to work, can see that this is not exactly conducive to a brilliant career. Sufferers encounter more problems in their private lives than healthy individuals.

Migraineurs suffer a reduced quality of life and it is for this reason that I have made migraine research a focus of my professional career as a neurologist. On the one hand I can put myself in the distressing position of a migraine sufferer - estimated 120 million sufferers in the world - and on the other, I am interested in finding the most effective treatment options.

The search for the causes of migraine has taken a considerable leap forward in recent times in particular. At last we can see light at the end of the tunnel! The more detail we know about the causes of migraine, the more precisely we can focus measures against it. Although we will not be able to cure it in the foreseeable future, we will be able to treat the symptoms which go to make up the "headache from hell" more effectively than in the past, thereby improving the quality of life of migraineurs. Since guidelines for Controlled Trials of Drugs in Migraine were issued in 1991 by the International Headache Society, acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), the active ingredient in Aspirin®, has come under scrutiny in a large number of studies, and the results of these trials were positive. This brochure not only provides an overview of the latest research results, but also, and above all, a whole range of tips which you, as a migraine sufferer, can use to make your life easier.

Prof. Jean Schoenen
President of the International Headache Society
(1999 - 2001)