Has anyone been given "Thorazine" for migraine pain in the ER??

Thorazine aka chlorpromazine can be used to treat nausea.

Any Migraine pain lasting longer than 72 hours without a four-hour pain-free break while awake, could be Status Migrainous and needs medical attention right away.  Some doctors (neurologists and pain doctors) are set up to do IV infusion therapy in their office. We have information on that HERE and HERE.

Let us know how you are feeling, ok?

Thorazine is a drug from the 60"s, rarely used anymore.  It was given for Chronic depression and/or Bi-polar.  Never heard of it being used for "pain".  It's use is to keep your "mood" stabilized. 

Note: Please read the comment following ths one for more accurate information.

It was given to me as a rescue medication once. Did nothing at all for me, so it was never given to me again. This type of medication is sometimes given either to help you rest or to help with nausea when your regular meds aren't working. I can't remember anyone who has had it saying that it helped much, but a couple have said that it helped a bit. Since it was given to you with Dilaudid, maybe it was for nausea. Did they say why they chose that drug?

Teri

I know exactly how you feel.  I had the same reaction with it that you did.  I also had the shakes and itching really bad.

Jill, Minneapolis

first of all if teh ER doc is re /mis diagnosing.re bound fro migriane  

and you have had a specailist neuro workup.

this is  possibly a problem that could be reported.

maybe you could get a second opinion from a  neuro confirm your diagnoses?

your neurologist or another neurologist/migraine  can be consulted  for emergency care. 

its never good to have constantly changing ER docs or pa's provide most of your care.

and if your ER treatment failed you should be in to see your neuro the next day.

I have not had Thorazine, but a similar drug, compozine which has horrible side affects as well. 

Thorazine is my rescue medicine and it worked in the beginning, but not so much anymore.  

Yes I have been given thorazine along with compazine and vistaril in the ER for status migraine.  It actually helped me.  The combination broke my migraine.  In fact those three medications in oral form are now my home meds for migraines.  They are the only things that break my migraines.  I am quite greatful to the ER doc who first prescribed them.  It is the only cocktail that ever worked.  I'm sorry you had such a bad experience.  I hope you find something that works for you soon.

I was given injections of Thorazine and Compazine in the mid to late 70's.  They told me it had the longest half-life so it would stay in my system longer.  Sent home, when I had to go back this was on the menu, started noticing my tongue felt funny, airway swelling then I started throwing up and dislocated my jaw the bone got hooked on a wisdom tooth, with my mouth closed, ? Can we say aspiration?  The effects of the meds were cumulative, so now I have beside the Rx extra-pyramidal effects and they have to ask, to make sure I haven't picked this up in book so I can get different drugs.  My husband & I both insist on knowing the meds given and what to expect, since I've had these since age 7, it's any and all Rx that comes down the pike.  The two meds above are in the phenothiazine group, so if you have a problem with one chances are you will with the rest of the group.  As, for feeling worse that's a given, anxious, almost paranoid and somnolence that seems out of control.

Toradol is a syntetic man made "pain reliever".  No chance of addiction, but given in conjunction with the other Rx you should have been in LaLa Land.  When the synthetics came on the market I was told they would alternate with the narcotics. Because if they gave a synthetic and you were hooked on narcotics this would throw you into withdrawals.  Gotta love that check and balance!  Toradol for me produces blisters and itching all over my body, a little effect the Dr. didn't tell us about.  And with the vomiting, dehydration factor it worsened every symptom I had and didn't know I had!

Good luck to you and hope you are far,far away from the next attack, and when you are in it, may  the Dr.s and staff treat you like a real person.

Thorazine,  ah yes.  When I've ended up either in the hospital status migrainus or coming home from day 3-4 from IV infusion, that has been a workable rescue. 

Unfortunately I have had migraine since childhood, and as is typical with women they have worsened with age.  I go for medical intervention about 4 times per year when Imitrex, phenergan, Vistaril fail or when the headache lasts 3 days.

Northside (Atlanta) hospital doctors have been excellent to listen to my history then proceed quickly with the appropiate (for me) IV fluids, Benedryl, then phenergan, then a narcotic (usually Dilaudid, sometimes morphine), then a corticosteroid.  This is the correct and compassionate ER treatment for status migraine.  The narcotic alone will not alleviate the migraine, but at least it takes the murderous edge off the pain until the steroid and your own body can get rid of it.

To the Thorazine question:  since I am 53 and have had headaches (refractive to all first line preventatives so far) which required medical intervention since I was 45, I am familiar with a different hospital which is Emory Adventist.  I used it because I had been dry heaving from the migraine for longer than usual and it was closer.  The ER doctor for some completely inexplicable reason, ignored my explanation of what works and proceeded to give me IV fluids and Thorazine.  Nothing else, just fluids and Thorazine. I had a terrifying reaction which has since been explained to me by my neurologist (James Keily-Atlanta) as acute dystonia.  Basically the Thorazine caused a faux Parkinsons-like syndrome.  I felt as though I had had a stroke, could not speak to call for help, right side of my face drew down and my right leg began spasming in a downward motion.  The headache was untouched though I did stop vomiting.  The paralysis lasted about 20 minutes before anyone came to check on me.  The doctor admininstered Benedryl as an antidote to the Thorazine and I slowly recovered my ability to speak and move normally over another hour or so.

The crux of this long post is this; giving Thorazine in a small amount for nausea associated with migraine might be okay.  I have never heard of it relieving a severe migraine.  Some inconsiderate anti-narcotic doctors assume that the anti-dopamine properties could conceivably help migraine pain.  I feel great sympathy for anyone with this disease.  The most horrid part is that the acute dystonia caused by Thorazine can become permanent in certain women my age, and it is not infrequent.

Migraine is so misunderstood; not only do the sufferers have to endure all the suggestions of loved ones friends and well-meaning people, but it is becoming the rage to blame the sufferer if the current preventatives don't work for some.  I find it frustrating to hear from "headache experts" that there are more than 120 possible preventatives, therefore if you still have uncontrollable headaches it must be due to non-compliance.

The triptans are a God-send and still work for me about half the time.  My poor mother spent weeks on end admitted to the hospital dozens of times in the 1970's and 1980's prior to Imitrex availability.  I asked her if she had ever been given Thorazine for migraine and she said no and that her neurologist told her it was totally contraindicated in women over 40 for migraine treatment due to potential complications.

Another note: Kaiser has been quite good about treating acute migraine in the office.  As those of you with severe migraine know, oral narcotics almost never work for migraine but demerol and phenergan in the muscle can sometimes prevent going to the ER.  I have only met with one doctor in acute care at Kaiser who "wanted to try" Toradol with phenergan.  Of course I left that visit with a level 8 headache and vomited my way on over to Northside for some appropiate and effective care.

As to Thorazine, I would just say no way.

Barbara

Have you ever receieved a shot of demerol for your migraines in the ER?