title: Quantitative assessment of the tension-type headache and migraine severity continuum.
abstract: Two quantitative measures for Waters' tension-type headache and migraine severity continuum are proposed. To ensure face validity, symptoms and precipitants of this disorder were complied from the literature as a basis for the Auckland Migraine and Headache Inventory. This inventory was completed by 84 participants (mean age +/- SD, 26.0 +/- 9.7 years; range, 18 to 59 years) who complied with the criteria of the International Headache Society for migraine or tension-type headache. The migraine headache index and the number of precipitants were derived from the Auckland Migraine and Headache Inventory. These scores yielded significant internal reliability (r = .77 and .84), test-retest reliability (r = .86 and .74), and concurrent validity (r = .57) coefficients. The data, therefore, support the notion that the migraine headache index and the number of precipitants are reliable and valid indices of tension-type headache and migraine severity, suitable for participant selection and assessment of treatment. This study offers support for Waters' suggestion that tension-type headache and migraine are extremes of a severity continuum.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Schade
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000145:classification* / Q000209:etiology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018781:Tension-Type Headache / Q000145:classification* / Q000209:etiology