Examples used in Australia
Migraine & Headache Australia lists options including propranolol, metoprolol, topiramate, sodium valproate, amitriptyline, nortriptyline, venlafaxine, pizotifen, candesartan, verapamil and cyproheptadine. These medicines have different risk profiles and are not interchangeable.
Pregnancy matters
Several preventive medicines have important pregnancy restrictions. Tell your prescriber if you are pregnant, planning pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Where oral migraine preventives fits
This Clea guide places oral migraine preventives in the broader migraine treatment landscape. The important distinction is whether it is used for an attack, prevention, symptom support, rehabilitation or another specific care goal.
Treatment choice is individual. The role of a therapy depends on the migraine pattern, other health conditions, pregnancy or breastfeeding, interactions, previous treatment experience, access and a clinician's assessment.
Evidence and limitations
Clea separates evidence from popularity. Randomised trials, systematic reviews, guidelines, observational studies and patient experiences do not carry the same weight. Where evidence is limited or indirect, we say so rather than presenting uncertainty as a recommendation.
Australian access
Australian availability can involve TGA registration, prescription requirements, PBS restrictions, private access, specialist criteria or device availability. Those details can change, so Clea links to current official sources and keeps access separate from whether a treatment is clinically suitable for you.
Safety and suitability
Do not start, stop, combine or change a medicine because of a Clea page or a community experience. Side effects, contraindications and interactions need to be considered with a GP, neurologist or pharmacist who knows your medical history.
What to track in Clea
Record headache or migraine days, severity, associated symptoms, medicines used and the context around the episode. Several weeks of consistent observations are usually more useful than trying to prove a cause from one attack.
- Headache and migraine-like days
- Severity and function
- Associated symptoms
- Acute medicine days
- Anything that changed around the pattern
Go to the original sources.
Clea checks source material, but PBS listings, medicine information and treatment access can change. Confirm current details with the TGA, PBS, your pharmacist or treating clinician.
How Clea sources and reviews migraine information →