Abstract
Categorizing and managing the common complaint of headache is a fundamental skill for the primary care clinician given the frequency of this presentation in the outpatient setting.
The first step is to determine if the headache has a benign etiology or is suggestive of a more serious condition. The onset, duration, and characteristics of the headache are the most important features in the history when determining the etiology and urgency of management. Most headaches are benign but certain red flags in the history and physical will help dissect the potentially life-threatening causes that should not be missed.
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Abbreviations
- AVM:
-
Arteriovenous malformation
- CDH:
-
Chronic daily headache
- CVT:
-
Chronic venous thrombosis
- GCA:
-
Giant cell arteritis or temporal arteritis
- HC:
-
Hemicrania continua
- LP:
-
Lumbar puncture
- MO:
-
Medication overuse
- PH:
-
Paroxysmal hemicranias
- SAH:
-
Subarachnoid hemorrhage
- SDH:
-
Subdural hematoma
- SUNCT:
-
Short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache
- TAC:
-
Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgia
- TMJ:
-
Temporal mandibular joint
- TTH:
-
Tension-type headache;
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Polanco, S. (2022). Headache. In: Sydney, E., Weinstein, E., Rucker, L.M. (eds) Handbook of Outpatient Medicine. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15353-2_26
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