Evaluation of acute headache in children

Last reviewed: 21 Aug 2025
Last updated: 31 Jul 2025

Summary

Diferenciales

Común

  • Migraine headache
  • Acute sinusitis
Todos los datos

Infrecuente

  • Subarachnoid hemorrhage
  • Ischemic stroke
  • Parenchymal hemorrhage
  • Vascular dissection (carotid, vertebral, or intracranial arteries)
  • Cerebral sinovenous thrombosis
  • Postconcussion headache
  • Cerebral contusion
  • Subdural hemorrhage
  • Intracranial hypotension
  • Epidural hemorrhage
  • Meningitis
  • Encephalitis
  • Dental caries, gingival disease, or abscess
  • Brain tumor
  • Temporomandibular disorders
  • Tension headache
  • Indomethacin-responsive headache
  • Medication overuse headache
  • Cluster headache
  • New daily persistent headache
  • Intermittent hydrocephalus
  • Pseudotumor cerebri (idiopathic intracranial hypertension)
  • Ventriculoperitoneal shunt dysfunction
  • Pituitary apoplexy
  • Hypertensive encephalopathy
  • Occipital neuralgia
  • Facial neuralgia
Todos los datos

Colaboradores

Autores

Christopher B. Oakley, MD

Assistant Professor

Department of Child Neurology

Johns Hopkins Hospital

Baltimore

MD

Divulgaciones

CBO declares that he has no competing interests.

Agradecimientos

Dr Christopher B. Oakley would like to gratefully acknowledge Dr Nicholas S. Abend and Dr Daniel J. Licht, the previous contributors to this topic.

Divulgaciones

NSA and DJL declare that they have no competing interests.

Revisores por pares

Paul Hamilton, MD

Director

Department of Emergency Medicine

Mount Sinai School of Medicine

New York

NY

Divulgaciones

PH declares that he has no competing interests.

Peer reviewer acknowledgements

BMJ Best Practice topics are updated on a rolling basis in line with developments in evidence and guidance. The peer reviewers listed here have reviewed the content at least once during the history of the topic.

Disclosures

Peer reviewer affiliations and disclosures pertain to the time of the review.

Referencias

Nuestros equipos internos de evidencia y editoriales colaboran con colaboradores expertos internacionales y revisores pares para garantizar que brindemos acceso a la información más clínicamente relevante posible.

Artículos principales

Headache Classification Committee of the International Headache Society (IHS). The international classification of headache disorders, 3rd edition. Cephalalgia. 2018 Jan;38(1):1-211.Texto completo  Resumen

American College of Radiology. ACR Appropriateness Criteria®: headache-child. 2017 [internet publication].Texto completo  Resumen

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Headaches in over 12s: diagnosis and management. Jun 2025 [internet publication].Texto completo

Lewis DW, Ashwal S, Dahl G, et al. Practice parameter: evaluation of children and adolescents with recurrent headaches: report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology and the Practice Committee of the Child Neurology Society. Neurology. 2002 Aug 27;59(4):490-8.Texto completo  Resumen

Artículos de referencia

Una lista completa de las fuentes a las que se hace referencia en este tema está disponible para los usuarios con acceso a todo BMJ Best Practice.

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