• Ukamaka Dorothy Itanyi, Philip Chinedu Okere, Nneka Ifeyinwa Iloanusi, and Felix U Uduma.
• Department of Radiology, University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Abuja, Nigeria.
• Afr Health Sci. 2020 Sep 1; 20 (3): 1496-1506.

BackgroundHeadache is a common symptomatology necessitating hospital consultations. Despite the prohibitive cost to patients in Nigeria, Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an evaluating tool for headache.ObjectivesTo determine the yield of cranial MRI and frequency of significant intracranial lesions among patients with chronic headache.MethodsA three-year retrospective analysis of cranial MR images and records of patients referred to Medicaid Diagnostic Centre in Abuja, Nigeria on account of chronic headache was done. Data was analyzed using SAS software version 9.3.Results150 patients aged 9 to 73 years (mean= 39.5 years) with chronic headache were studied. There were 54 males and 96 females with a ratio of 1:1.8. 48% and 52% had normal and abnormal MRI findings respectively. Although the number with abnormal MRI was higher than those with normal exams, this difference was not significant (p=0.624). The commonest neoplastic and non-neoplastic abnormalities were pituitary macroadenoma (4%) and sinusitis (21.3%) respectively.ConclusionIn our study, MRI had a low diagnostic yield in patients with chronic headache. Therefore, it is expedient that physicians stratify patients with chronic headache based on red flag signs to determine the need for cranial MRI in view of financial burden.© 2020 Itanyi UD et al.

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