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Post-Traumatic Headache in Children and Adolescents: a Narrative Review with a Focus on Management
Danny Adel Monsour1, Christine Lay2, Tasjeel Ansari2
1Centre for Headache, Women's College Hospital, University of Toronto, 76 Grenville Street, 3rd Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1B2, Canada. danny.monsour@one-mail.on.ca.
Insights
Post-traumatic headache (PTH) in children is common but lacks evidence-based management guidelines. Further research is needed to bridge the gap between understanding pediatric traumatic brain injury pathophysiology and clinical practice for effective PTH treatment.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Neurotraumatology
- Headache Medicine
Background:
- Post-traumatic headache (PTH) is common in children, yet it represents a niche population with limited research.
- Diagnosis, management, and prognosis of pediatric PTH require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and management of pediatric PTH.
- To identify gaps in current research and suggest future directions for pediatric PTH.
Main Methods:
- A systematic literature review of 52 articles on pediatric PTH published between 2016 and 2020.
- Databases searched include MEDLINE and EMBASE.
Main Results:
- Recent advancements in understanding traumatic brain injury (TBI) pathophysiology offer potential therapeutic targets.
- Despite consensus guidelines, a lack of controlled trials hinders effective management of pediatric PTH.
- New insights from laboratory research and advanced MR imaging highlight a translational gap to clinical practice.
Conclusions:
- There is a significant need for evidence-based guidelines for managing pediatric PTH.
- Future research should focus on translating pathophysiological insights into clinical practice to improve outcomes for children with PTH.
Purpose Of Review:
Although common, post-traumatic headache (PTH) in the pediatric population is a niche group with a paucity of published evidence on the diagnosis, most appropriate acute and preventative management, and prognosis. This article aims to review pediatric PTH, its epidemiology and pathophysiology with a focus on management and future directions.
Recent Findings:
Using MEDLINE, EMBASE, 52 articles on PTH in children and adolescents from 2016 to 2020 were identified. Over the last 4 years, our understanding of traumatic brain injury pathophysiology has grown, expanding the potential for more therapeutic targets. Despite this achievement, and recently published consensus guidelines, the review demonstrated a lack of published controlled trials to help guide management of pediatric PTH. The last 4 years have provided new insights into the potential pathophysiological mechanisms through laboratory research and advanced MR imaging; however, there continues to be a translational gap to clinical practice.
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