The journal of headache and pain
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Multicenter Study
Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias: frequency in a general neurology clinic setting.
Cases of trigeminal autonomic cephalalgia seen in general neurology outpatient clinics by one consultant neurologist over a 4 year period (2004-2007 inclusive) were identified. A total of 40 cases was identified (=1.2% of all referrals, 5.3% of headache referrals), most with cluster headache, the remainder with SUNCT or SUNA. There was evidence of both delayed diagnosis and inappropriate treatment, despite involvement of other secondary care specialties. Increased awareness of this diagnostic category is required to ensure effective deployment of effective, evidence-based treatments.
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Comparative Study
Evidence of persistent central sensitization in chronic headaches: a multi-method study.
The aim of this study was to investigate central sensitization (CS) in chronic headaches and compare this phenomenon between chronic migraine (CM) and chronic tension-type headache (CTTH). We recruited 69 patients with chronic headaches and 18 control subjects. Questionnaires of headache history, allodynia and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale were administered. ⋯ CS is persistent and prevalent in patients with various types of chronic headache. CS levels are unrelated to the predominant side of pain, disease duration or depression. Neither is CS related to the headache type, suggesting similar mechanisms of headache chronification and chronicity maintaining and possibly explaining clinical similarity of various forms of chronic headache.