OBJECTIVE: To assess the feasibility of using international disease-specific, cross-sectional databases for pharmacoeconomic research. METHODS: We evaluated several large international cross-sectional, disease-specific databases for their appropriateness in early and late phase research. A migraine database is presented as an example. The migraine database contained 699 physicians and 8,537 subjects in 6 countries. RESULTS: Data elements could be used in modeling, cost of care, patient segmentation, and cost-effectiveness studies. For example, average resource use for France, Germany and the US for PCP visits (over the previous 12 months) was 3.3, 4.0, and 4.3 days, respectively. Inpatient hospitalization days for the same countries were 0.1, 0.1 and 1.9, respectively. For modeling purposes, transition probabilities could be based on the length of the migraine attack (in France): 25 hours without treatment and 7 hours with treatment. Lost work time, important to migraineurs, was examined by severity group. During the previous 6 months lost time from work for moderate migraines for France, Germany and the US was 11.4, 4.5, and 4.8, respectively. For severe patients, lost work time was 6.6, 6.2, and 7.8 days, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: International databases offer some information useful for PE research. Their strength relies on the large number of patients and the validity of the data is higher than using experts to estimate resource utilization. In addition, the international aspect of the database facilitates cross-country comparisons and the adaptation of models to local settings.