My husband has migraines and his doctor prescribed a preventive medication (Inderol) which has been very effective in preventing the migraines. In fact, it has been the only thing which has been effective! However, at the dosage required to prevent the migraines, it has caused exercise intolerance. When he works out, he becomes tired very quickly and cannot exercise for even 20 minutes at his target heart rate. I'm concerned that, while he's able to live a normal life without the migraines, he's at increased risk for other health problems b/c of increased weight and decreased cardiovascular health. Can you offer any suggestions for how he can keep fit while on this medication which causes "exercise intolerance"? (He's age 46.) Thanks for any help you can provide!

This is a somewhat common complaint with inderal, and my advice is that he might first want to try timing his inderal after he exercises to decrease the side effects. He could also try a lower dose of propranolol and see if that still works for his migraines, or he could try a different beta blocker to see if that works without unwanted symptoms.

If all that fails, there are still a lot of options. If he has some idea of what triggers his migraines, he could try to avoid those triggers. In addition, he could try one of several other medications for migraines. These include calcium channel blockers or tricylic medications, or those that are sometimes used to treat seizures.

So don't give up -- he doesn't have to live like this, and he should be able to find migraine relief and be able to do a good workout at the same time. It will just require close work and persistence on the part of your husband and his doctor.

Dr. Mike Potter

-- Michael Potter, MD, is an associate professor at the University of California at San Francisco Medical Center.

First published March 29, 2005
Last updated November 19, 2007
Copyright © 2005 Consumer Health Interactive