Diagnosing migraine in research and clinical settings: the validation of the Structured Migraine Interview (SMI).
BACKGROUND
Migraine is a common disorder that is highly co-morbid with psychopathological conditions such as depression and anxiety. Despite the extensive research and availability of treatment, migraine remains under-recognised and undertreated. The aim of this study was to design a short and practical screening tool to identify migraine for clinical and research purposes.


METHODS
The structured migraine interview (SMI) based on the International Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD) criteria was used in a clinical setting of headache sufferers and compared to clinical diagnosis by headache specialist. In addition to the validating characteristics of the interview different methods of administration were also tested.


RESULTS
The SMI has high sensitivity (0.87) and modest specificity (0.58) when compared to headache specialist's clinical diagnosis.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study demonstrated that a structured interview based on the ICHD criteria is a useful and valid tool to identify migraine in research settings and to a limited extent in clinical settings, and could be used in studies on large samples where clinical interviews are less practical.
Samaan
Zainab
Z
Dept of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. samaanz@mcmaster.ca
Macgregor
E Anne
EA
Andrew
Dowson
D
McGuffin
Peter
P
Farmer
Anne
A
D000328:Adult; D000700:Analgesics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy; D020325:Migraine with Aura / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D020326:Migraine without Aura / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D009790:Occupations; D010865:Pilot Projects; D044469:Racial Groups; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013689:Telephone
D000700:Analgesics