Management and outcomes of 3132 patients with acute headache in study of computed tomography for diagnosis of subarachnoid haemorrhage
| Outcome | No (%) of patients (n=3132) |
|---|---|
| Diagnostic procedures: | |
| Computed tomography ≤6 hours after headache onset | 953 (30.4) |
| Lumbar puncture | 1546 (49.4) |
| Computed tomography angiogram | 229 (7.3) |
| Traditional angiogram | 75 (2.4) |
| Magnetic resonance imaging angiogram | 13 (0.4) |
| Final diagnosis: | |
| Benign headache | 1750 (55.9) |
| Migraine | 629 (20.1) |
| Subarachnoid haemorrhage | 240 (7.7) |
| Viral illness | 90 (2.9) |
| Acute ischaemic stroke/transient ischaemic attack | 65 (2.1) |
| Postcoital headache | 55 (1.8) |
| Sinusitis | 36 (1.1) |
| Syncope | 33 (1.1) |
| Neck strain | 13 (0.4) |
| Brain tumour with mass effect | 9 (0.3) |
| Subdural haematoma | 9 (0.3) |
| Intracerebral haemorrhage | 8 (0.3) |
| Hypoglycaemia | 4 (0.1) |
| Weakness—not determined | 4 (0.1) |
| Bacterial meningitis | 1 (0.03) |
| Other benign cause* | 186 (5.9) |
| Admitted to hospital | 345 (11.0) |
*No patients were admitted to hospital or had diagnosis with any risk of important morbidity or mortality.