Headache is a common presenting complaint to the emergency departmen (ED), representing 3% to 5% of all ED visits. Patients commonly present because they are experiencing a headache that is new to them or is more severe than anything they have sufferde in the past. Alternatively, they present to the ED as a last relort, having put up with their headache for years but never having sought medical attention. The actual incidence of life-threatening causes for headache is quite low. Headaches are common and frequently benign in late childhood and adolescence. However, they are uncommon in the young child and a more exhaustive search for an underlying cause may be warranted in this group.

Continue Reading