Medication overuse headache (MOH), also known as
rebound headache usually occurs when
analgesics are taken frequently to relieve
headaches. Rebound headaches frequently occur daily, can be very painful and are a common cause of chronic daily headache. They typically occur in patients with an underlying headache disorder such as
migraine or
tension-type headache that "transforms" over time from an episodic condition to chronic daily headache due to excessive intake of acute headache relief medications. MOH is a serious, disabling and well-characterized disorder, which represents a worldwide problem and is now considered the third-most prevalent type of headache. Population-based studies report the prevalence rate of MOH to be 1% to 2% in the general population, but its relative frequency is much higher in secondary and tertiary care.