Headache Care Tools and Trusted Resources

Practical support for headache care

Effective headache care extends beyond diagnosis and medication. Practical tools, reliable information, and trusted organizations play an important role in monitoring symptoms, supporting decision-making, and navigating care over time.

This page brings together care tools developed or recommended by the Ottawa Headache Centre, along with carefully curated external resources that patients and clinicians may find helpful. These resources are intended to support care between visits and complement clinical assessment.

Headache tracking tools

Tracking headache frequency, severity, triggers, and medication use can meaningfully improve diagnosis and treatment decisions. Headache diaries are commonly recommended as part of routine headache care.

Trusted external headache trackers

Migraine Tracker by Migraine Canada

Migraine Buddy

MyClusters - built specifically for cluster headache (i.e., Horton's headache)

Patient handouts and care tools

The following resources are designed to support shared decision-making, patient education, and safe use of treatments.

OHC resources

Migraine physician prescribing guide

Medication handouts - an extensive repository of medication handouts intended for both patients and clinicians 

Trusted external resources

Patient Resource Kit - comprehensive patient's guide from Migraine Canada

Hot to use acute medications for migraine - a patient's guide from Migraine Canada

How to use preventive medications - a patient's guide from Migraine Canada

These materials are commonly used during or after clinical visits to reinforce discussions and answer common questions.

Special clinical contexts

Some headache resources are most relevant in specific clinical situations where treatment decisions may differ from routine care.

OHC resources

Headache in pregnancy and during breastfeeding/lactation

Headache in the Emergency Department (ED)

These resources are intended to support safe, context-specific decision-making and may be useful for both patients and clinicians.

Trusted external organizations

The organizations below provide high-quality education, advocacy, and guideline-based information. They are included here as trusted complements to Ottawa Headache Centre resources.

Migraine and general headache education

Migraine Canada - Canadian patient education and advocacy organization. A leader in patient resources.

Migraine Québec - French-language migraine education and advocacy.

Canadian Headache Society Guidelines and Position Statements - Canadian national authority of headache medicine, producing contemporary clinical guidelines and position statements.

European Migraine and Headache Alliance - a world-leading European patient advocacy and education.

Cluster headache

Clusterbusters - a patient advocacy and educational organization.

Migraine Canada: cluster headache - section on Migraine Canada.

Association of Migraine Disorders: cluster headache - section from the Association of Migraine Disorders.

CSF-leak and spontaneous intracranial hypotension

Spinal-CSF-Leak patient pamphlet - patient-friendly overview of CSF leaks.

Spinal CSF-Leak Canada - Canadian patient support and education.

Spinal CSF-Leak Foundation - International education and advocacy.

CSF-Leak Association - UK-based patient education organization.

Looking for condition-specific or treatment information?

For explanations of headache disorders and diagnosis, visit Conditions and Diagnosis.

For medication and treatment approaches, visit Treatments and Medications

Disclaimer

This material is provided for educational purposes and does not replace independent clinical judgment or institutional protocols. Management decisions remain the responsibility of the treating clinician.