Abstract
Children and adolescents with sickle cell disease (SCD) have a high prevalence of recurrent headaches (24.0–43.9 %). Acute presentation with headache can be diagnostically challenging, as the clinician must consider evaluation of several potentially devastating conditions including vascular diseases (stroke, hemorrhage, venous sinus thrombosis, moyamoya, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome), facial and orbital bone infarcts, dental pain, and osteomyelitis. Patients with SCD and primary headache disorders may benefit from comprehensive headache treatment plans that include abortive therapy, prophylactic therapy, and non-pharmacological modalities. Although there is limited data in adults, those with SCD are at risk for medication overuse headache secondary to frequent opioid use. Addressing headache in patients with SCD may help to reduce their use of opioids and disability and improve pain and quality of life.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 20 |
Pages (from-to) | 1-10 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Current pain and headache reports |
Volume | 20 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 1 2016 |
Keywords
- Abortive treatment
- Facial pain
- Headache
- Medication overuse
- Prophylactic treatment
- Sickle cell disease
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Clinical Neurology
- Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine