Primary Headache Approach in the Emergency Departments: A Systematic Scoping Review of Prospective Studies

Abstract

This systematic scoping review aims to answer questions related to the main characteristics of primary headache, the need for neuroimaging, and the presence of red flags in these patients. A review of prospective studies including the MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, LILACS, and SCIELO databases, as well as the grey literature, was conducted. The methodological quality of the selected investigations was also assessed. Six investigations met the selection criteria. The mean age of people with primary headache was less than 43 years, with ages ranging from 39 to 46 years. Most of the studies reported the presence of nausea/vomiting, between 12% and 60% of the patients studied. To a lesser extent, there was also the presence of intense and moderate pain, loss of consciousness, stiff neck, presence of aura, and photophobia. The most frequent diagnoses were unspecified headache, migraine, and tension headache. The studies did not recommend neuroimaging and no red flags were reported. Primary headache occurred more frequently in women, in those under 46 years of age with a history of migraine and similar episodes. Moreover, the presence of red flags and the need for neuroimaging in patients with primary headaches were not evidenced.