title: Postoperative headache after surgery for vestibular schwannoma.
abstract: Postoperative headache was studied among 251 patients who underwent operation for vestibular schwannoma. A questionnaire based on the McGill Pain Questionnaire and the Finnish Pain Questionnaire was sent to the patients. Twenty-one expressions describing postoperative headache were extracted with a factor analysis. The pain intensity was expressed on a visual analog scale, and the risk factors for postoperative headache were evaluated. Immediately after the operation, 154 subjects reported headache. Eighty-nine of the patients had had headache before operation, whereas 65 patients experienced headache only after operation. An average of 8.9 years after surgery, 93 patients still reported headache. Headache was a major problem for 27 subjects; 18 of the 27 had suffered from headache before operation. A retrosigmoidal approach, postoperative gait problems, preoperative headache, and small tumor size predicted postoperative problems with headache. When headache is present before operation, it tends to continue after operation, and if headache continues for 1 year, it usually persists without being reduced.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, University Hospital Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Levo
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pyykkö
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Blomstedt
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009464:Neuroma, Acoustic / Q000601:surgery*; D013506:Otologic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires