There’s just enough awareness about migraine and other headache disorders to result in volumes of bad information. It’s as though everyone is out to make a quick buck off the suffering and desperation of hurting patients. With so much information out there, is it possible to know what’s accurate?
Do reliable sources even exist?
Yes, they do. Almost all of it is free and it’s all available online for anyone to access. If it sounds questionable, suspect, fishy, or too good to be true, use these resources to get the facts. It can be difficult to tell if articles and other content are accurate and up-to-date. Here are some things to look for:
- Who wrote it? You should be able to find the author’s name and perhaps their credentials.
- When was it written or updated? There should be a date when the content was last updated and maybe the date it was originally written. This is important since new research can render older content inaccurate.
- What are the sources of the information? If you’re looking at medical information, the sources should be listed, usually at the bottom of the page.
Information Resources
- Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy
- American Headache Society
- American Migraine Foundation
- Cephalalgia
- Dawn Buse
- Headache – The Journal of Head and Face Pain
- International Classification of Headache Disorders
- International Headache Society
- Migraine Action
- Migraine Association of Ireland
- Migraine Trust
- Migraine Research Foundation
- National Headache Foundation
- United Council for Neurologic Specialties – Headache Medicine Diplomates
Must-Follow Twitter Feeds
While not a complete list, this list includes some of the country’s leading headache experts and organizations. These are not bloggers or companies with something to sell. If you want to know what’s happening in the world of headache medicine, these are the ones to follow. They are listed in alphabetical order, not necessarily in order of importance.
- AMPP Study @AMPP_Study
- Amaal Starling @AmaalStarling
- American Headache Society @ahsheadache
- American Headache and Migraine Association @AHMAOrg
- American Migraine Foundation @amfmigraine
- Cephalalgia @JCephalalgia
- Cluster Headache Support Group @CHSupportGroup
- Dave Watson @wvheadachedoc
- David Dodick @daviddodick
- Dawn Buse @DawnBuse
- Elizabeth Loder @eloder
- Elizabeth Seng @SengElizabeth
- Headache @HeadacheJournal
- Jefferson Headache Center @JeffHeadacheCtr
- National Headache Foundation @NHF
- Peter Goadsby @petergoadsby
- Rob Cowan @rpaulcowan
- Robert Shapiro @headachedoc
- Tammy Rome @TammyRome
- Teri Robert @TRobert
- Todd Schwedt @schwedtt
- William Young @williambyoung59
Other resources
- BonTriage patient questionnaire produces a comprehensive report about your migraine and headache symptoms. This report can be shared with your doctor to help form a diagnosis and treatment plan tailored to your unique health situation.
- ClinicalTrials.gov lists all current clinical trials, inclusion/exclusion criteria, locations, and everything else you need to know
- GoodRx.com offers a discount card to offset the cost of non-covered or poorly covered medicines
- Patient Access – Copyright.com allows low-cost access to medical journals and research to patients
- Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute is dedicated to improving the quality and relevance of evidence available to help patients, caregivers, clinicians, employers, insurers, and policy makers make informed health decisions.
- Patients Like Me puts patients in control of their own health information and allows you to share your data with researchers, meet other patients like you, and track your overall health.
Our goal is to provide accurate, reliable, truthful, scientifically-backed information every single time. We are dedicated to accurate, reliable, trustworthy information about migraine and other headache disorders.