my personal edition > migraine > news


  E-Mail this DGDispatch to a colleague

DGDispatch

Three-Question Headache Screening Test Can Diagnose Migraines: Presented at ANA

By Jill Stein

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- October 24, 2003 -- A simple, three-question headache screening questionnaire can help physicians quickly identify patients with migraine headaches, researchers announced here on October 20^th at the 128^th Annual Meeting of the American Neurological Association.

Dr. Roger Cady, Director, The Headache Care Center, Springfield, Missouri, United States, reported results in 3,014 patients with a diagnosis of migraine who were also screened using a simple three-question headache screening questionnaire.

"While migraine patients most often seek help from a primary care physician, these physicians often have limited time to perform a comprehensive evaluation for migraine," Dr. Cady said. "Simple and effective tools are needed to assist the primary care doctor with rapid recognition of acute migraine, so that the most appropriate treatment can be offered."

The trial included men and women from 18 to 72 years of age who had been diagnosed with migraine by their private physician. The diagnosis was established using either International Headache Society (IHS) criteria for migraine (1.1 or 1.2), the physician's clinical impression of migraine based on the patient's history and investigator's clinical experience, or the presence of recurrent disabling headaches based on the patient's report or questioning by the investigator.

The Headache Screen used in the trial asked the patient three simple questions:
1. Do you have recurrent headaches that interfere with work, family, or social function?
2. Do(es) your headache(s) last at least 4 hours untreated?
3. Have you had new or different headaches in the past 6 months?

Of the 3,014 patients with a diagnosis of migraine by any of the three criteria, 77% scored a positive migraine response on the Headache Screen.

Overall, 78% of the 2,394 patients diagnosed by IHS criteria, 74% of the 548 patients diagnosed by clinical impression, and 68% of the 72 patients diagnosed by recurrent disabling headaches were determined to have a positive response on the Headache Screen.

The sensitivity of the three-question Headache Screen was not affected by the specialty of the physician who administered it or by the frequency of the patient's headaches.

Overall, the results should establish the novel Headache Screen as a simple tool that allows office-based practitioners to promptly diagnose migraines, Dr. Cady concluded.


[Study title: Diagnosing Migraine with a Simple and Efficient Three-Question Headache Screen. Abstract 52]

E-Mail this DGDispatch to a colleague

To print, use this version