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Management and behavior-modifying recommendation effects in childhood headache
Mesut Gungor1, Muhammet Akif Guler2, Yuksel Sumeyra Karagoz3
1Department of Pediatric Neurology, Kocaeli University Medical Faculty, Kocaeli, Turkey.
Insights
Behavioral modifications are recommended for childhood primary headaches before medication. Lifestyle changes like regular sleep and nutrition improved symptoms in over 20% of young patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Clinical Research
Background:
- Headaches are a prevalent issue in childhood.
- There is a growing tendency towards using medication for pediatric headaches.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of behavior-modifying recommendations for primary headaches in children.
- To determine if lifestyle changes are effective before initiating pharmacologic treatment.
Main Methods:
- Excluded secondary causes in pediatric headache patients.
- Classified remaining patients with primary headaches into subgroups.
- Implemented behavior-modifying recommendations (sleep, nutrition, hydration, screen time).
- Assessed patient response at 1, 3, and 6 months, with medication considered if needed.
Main Results:
- 30.6% of 875 headache patients had primary headaches.
- Behavior-modifying recommendations showed benefits for migraine with aura (23.1%), migraine without aura (20.3%), and tension-type headaches (36.8%).
Conclusions:
- Prioritize exclusion of secondary causes for pediatric headaches.
- Behavioral and lifestyle modifications should be the initial approach for primary headaches in children before resorting to pharmacologic treatments.
Background:
Headaches are common in childhood. Recently, there has been an increasing trend toward pharmacological treatment.
Methods:
Secondary causes were excluded first in patients who attended our clinic with headache. Those without a secondary cause were evaluated as primary headache and classified into subgroups. Behavior-modifying recommendations (adequate and regular sleep, adequate and regular nutrition, adequate fluid intake, and restriction of screen exposure) were given to all patients. Patients were re-evaluated at 1, 3, and 6 months. Pharmacologic treatment was started at the end of the first month with follow-up at the third and sixth months for those who did not benefit from the behavior-modifying recommendations.
Results:
A total of 875 patients presented with headache complaints, of which 30.6% were evaluated as primary headache. Behavior-modifying recommendations were beneficial for 23.1% with migraine with aura; 20.3% with migraine without aura, and 36.8% with tension-type headache.
Conclusion:
Secondary causes should be excluded first in patients who present to the pediatric neurology clinic with headache. Behavioral modifications to change the lifestyle of patients diagnosed with primary headache should be tried before giving pharmacologic treatment.
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