Remote poststroke headache in children: Characteristics and association with stroke recurrence.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Neurology
• Stroke Medicine
• Neuroepidemiology

Background:

• New-onset headache is a frequent complication in adult stroke survivors, but data in children are scarce.
• Understanding post-stroke headache in pediatric populations is crucial for comprehensive care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of new-onset headache following pediatric ischemic stroke.
• To characterize patients with post-stroke headache and explore its association with stroke recurrence.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective study of children (30 days to 18 years) diagnosed with arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) between 2008 and 2016.
• Post-stroke headache, defined as headache occurring >30 days after stroke, was identified via electronic medical record review.

Main Results:

• Of 115 pediatric AIS patients, 41 (36%) developed post-stroke headache, with a median onset of 6 months.
• Older age at stroke and arteriopathy were significantly associated with post-stroke headache.
• Post-stroke headache was linked to an increased risk of stroke recurrence (p=0.049).

Conclusions:

• Remote post-stroke headache is a common issue in pediatric stroke survivors, especially older children.
• Headaches in these patients often lead to significant healthcare utilization, including emergency visits and hospital admissions.
• A potential association between post-stroke headache and subsequent stroke recurrence warrants further investigation.