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Seasonal variation of presentation for headache in a pediatric emergency department

Kerry Caperell1, Raymond Pitetti

  • 1From the *Department of Pediatrics, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY; and †University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.

Pediatric Emergency Care
|March 4, 2014
PubMed

Insights

Pediatric emergency department (ED) visits for headache peak in the fall and are lowest in late spring. This seasonal pattern for childhood headaches persists across various demographic and diagnostic groups.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Emergency Medicine
  • Neurology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Headaches are a frequent reason for pediatric emergency department (ED) visits.
  • Observed seasonal variations in pediatric headache ED visits suggest a potential link to the academic calendar.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the seasonal variation in emergency department (ED) visits for headache among children.
  • To test the hypothesis that ED visits for pediatric headache are more frequent during the school year than during summer months.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective review of electronic medical records from January 1, 2008, to June 30, 2010.
  • Included patients aged 4 years and older with headache as the chief complaint, excluding those with specific neurological conditions.
  • Analyzed visit data, grouping by month and academic year (school vs. non-school periods).

Main Results:

  • A total of 2731 eligible visits were analyzed.
  • A statistically significant peak in headache ED visits occurred in September, October, and November (P<0.001).
  • A significant nadir in visits was observed in May and June, consistent across age, sex, race, and headache type.

Conclusions:

  • Pediatric ED visits for headache are significantly more common during the fall academic period.
  • Conversely, visits decrease during the late spring and summer months.
  • These seasonal trends in childhood headaches are robust across diverse patient subgroups.
Abstract

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