Meaningful Measurable Quality Outcomes in Headache Management.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: In this review, we explore the multitude of metrics used to measure the impact of acute and preventive treatments for headache disorders. These measurements seek to quantify the headache experience and changes in that experience through not only pure numerical measures of headache characteristics but also computed patient-reported outcome measures, assessments of participation in activities, and economic evaluations. RECENT FINDINGS: The 2018-2023 release of CGRP-targeted therapies provided ample opportunity to showcase the current array of outcome metrics. Notable measures include the impact of treatment on physical activity and the change in comorbid symptoms after initiation of effective headache preventive medications. As headache therapeutics continue to advance, finding the best way to measure the benefit of these treatments allows clinicians to select the optimal treatment for their patients.