Headache in the Emergency Department: Avoiding Misdiagnosis of Dangerous Secondary Causes, An Update.
Emerg Med Clin North Am 2020;
39:67-85. [PMID:
33218663 DOI:
10.1016/j.emc.2020.09.004]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
In the initial assessment of the headache patient, the emergency physician must consider several dangerous secondary causes of headache. A thorough history and physical examination, along with consideration of a comprehensive differential diagnosis may alert the emergency physician to the diagnosis of a secondary headache particularly when the history is accompanied by any of the following clinical features: sudden/severe onset, focal neurologic deficits, altered mental status, advanced age, active or recent pregnancy, coagulopathy, malignancy, fever, visual deficits, and/or loss of consciousness.
Collapse