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Headache in children: effectiveness of multidisciplinary treatment in a tertiary paediatric headache clinic
Ann-Britt L Soee1, Liselotte Skov, Lene Theil Skovgaard
1Department of Paediatrics, Children's Headache Clinic, Copenhagen University Hospital Herlev, Denmark.
Insights
Multidisciplinary treatment significantly reduced headache frequency and improved quality of life in children. This approach shows promise for managing frequent or chronic pediatric headaches.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Clinical Psychology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
Background:
- Headache is a common complaint in childhood, significantly impacting quality of life.
- Effective management strategies for pediatric headache, particularly chronic forms, are crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary treatment program for children with headache.
- To describe the operational model of a specialized Children's Headache Clinic in Denmark.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 169 children (mean age 11.7 years) with various headache types, including chronic headache (39%), were treated.
- Treatment involved pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions delivered by a specialist team.
- Patient outcomes were assessed at six and 12 months using headache frequency and quality of life measures (PedsQL™ 4.0).
Main Results:
- Fifty percent of children experienced over a 50% reduction in headache frequency at six months.
- A statistically significant decrease in headache frequency was observed across all six headache diagnostic groups.
- A significant overall improvement in quality of life was recorded for the patient cohort.
Conclusions:
- Multidisciplinary treatment programs demonstrate positive outcomes for children with frequent or chronic headaches.
- The findings support the value of specialized pediatric headache clinics in improving patient well-being.
Aim:
The aim of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of a specific multidisciplinary treatment programme for children with headache and to describe the concept and settings of the Children's Headache Clinic in Denmark.
Method:
All new patients were included and evaluations were conducted after six and 12 months. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments were offered by a team of specialists (physicians, headache nurses, a physiotherapist and a psychologist).
Patients:
The subjects comprised 169 children (mean age 11.7 (range 4-17), 91 females, 78 males), 39% of whom suffered from chronic headache (≥15 days/month). All children were diagnosed according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, second edition; 20% had migraine, 34% tension-type headache, 27% mixed headache, 4% medication-overuse headache, and 15% were diagnosed with other types of headaches.
Results:
Fifty per cent of the children had an improvement in headache frequency above 50% at six months. By the use of repeated measurement analysis, we found a significant decrease in headache frequency in all of the six headache groups, whereas the increase in quality of life (PedsQL™ 4.0) was significant for the group as a whole.
Conclusion:
Though preliminary, the results show a good outcome for multidisciplinary treatment programmes for children who suffer from frequent or chronic headache.
