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Clinical Pictures and Diagnostic Features of COVID-19 Headache

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Headache Disorders in Pandemic Conditions

Part of the book series: Headache ((HEAD))

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Abstract

Headache is among the top five neurological symptoms of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) and shows some distinct characteristics apart from other viral infection-related headaches. In clinical practice, it may manifest with several different phenotypes (migraine-like, tension-type, etc.) and may emerge not only in patients with foreknown primary headache but also in patients with no headache history at all. It should be emphasized that a severe headache might be the only manifestation of COVID-19, which could have a diagnostic value for the early recognition of the infection. The most remarkable features can be summarized as bilateral (majorly in frontal or frontotemporal location), long-lasting, pressing/pulsating in quality, and partially or completely resistant to analgesic treatments. Anosmia and/or ageusia are very frequent in patients with COVID-19 headache, typically. Gastrointestinal complaints (such as nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, etc.) as well as photo and phonophobia may accompany the headache. COVID-19-related headache is not specific only to the early phases of COVID-19 but might be persistent after the acute phase of the infection as a post-COVID symptom. Moreover, the presence of headache might give the clinician some clues about the course of COVID-19. Due to its unique characteristics, high frequency, and potential to highlight the underlying mechanisms of viral infection-related headaches, COVID-19 headache deserves a separate subheading in ICHD-3 classification. In this section, we discussed the clinical phenotypes and differentiating features of COVID-19-related headaches in detail and proposed a set of diagnostic criteria to enhance the scientific interest.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neurology Department, Health Sciences University, Kanuni Sultan Süleyman Education and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey

    Arife Çimen Atalar

  2. Department of Neurology, Headache Center, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey

    Betül Baykan

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  1. Arife Çimen Atalar
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  2. Betül Baykan
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Türkiye

    Aynur Özge

  2. Neurology, Brain 360-Brain Health Center, Istanbul, Türkiye

    Derya Uludüz

  3. Dept of Neurology & Algology, NÖROM, Neuropsychiatry Center, Gazi University, Ankara, Türkiye

    Hayrunnisa Bolay

  4. Department of Neurology, Gülhane Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye

    Ömer Karadaş

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Atalar, A.Ç., Baykan, B. (2023). Clinical Pictures and Diagnostic Features of COVID-19 Headache. In: Özge, A., Uludüz, D., Bolay, H., Karadaş, Ö. (eds) Headache Disorders in Pandemic Conditions . Headache. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26309-5_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26309-5_5

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-26309-5

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