Published 20 November 2008, doi:10.1136/bmj.a2329
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;337:a2329

Practice

Guidelines

Diagnosis and management of headache in adults: summary of SIGN guideline

C W Duncan, consultant neurologist1, D P B Watson, general practitioner2, A Stein, programme manager 3, on behalf of the Guideline Development Group

1 Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Aberdeen , 2 Hamilton Medical Group, Aberdeen , 3 Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, Edinburgh EH7 5EA

Correspondence to: A Stein ailsa.stein@nhs.net

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Headache is common and has a lifetime prevalence of over 90% in the United Kingdom.1 It accounts for 4.4% of consultations in primary care2 and 30% of neurology outpatient consultations.3 4 Healthcare professionals find diagnosis and management of headache difficult and they worry about missing rare, serious causes.2 5 This article summarises the most recent recommendations from the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) on the diagnosis and management of headache in adults.6

SIGN recommendations are based on systematic reviews of best available evidence. The strength of the evidence is graded as A, B, C, or D (figureGo), but the grading does not reflect the clinical importance of the recommendations. Recommended best practice ("good practice points") based on the clinical experience of the guideline development group is also indicated (as GPP).


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  		Explanation of SIGN grades of recommendations.

 
A good history is the key to diagnosis. Examination is usually normal in patients with . . . [Full text of this article]


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