Pediatric headaches: what do the children want?
One hundred consecutive children (aged 3 to 17 years), drawn from primary care pediatric clinics, with a greater than 3-month history of headaches completed surveys to determine the type and associated features of their headache and to query their reasons for wanting to see a physician. Additionally, the children were asked to draw pictures of how they felt when they had a headache to assess their nonverbal perceptions. Over 90% of the headaches were migrainous (65% common, 23% classic, 5% basilar). The children wanted three answers from the physician: what was the cause of their headache, what would make it better, and reassurance that they had no life-threatening illness. Furthermore, 33% of the children's illustrations disclosed depressive features of helplessness, frustration, and anger. Over 20% of the adolescents depicted themselves as dead, dying, or about to be killed by their headache.
Lewis
D W
DW
Department of Pediatrics, US Naval Hospital, Portsmouth, VA, USA.
Middlebrook
M T
MT
Mehallick
L
L
Rauch
T M
TM
Deline
C
C
Thomas
E F
EF
D000293:Adolescent; D001154:Art; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology*; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D002666:Psychology, Child