Headache

Case scenario…
• Ms. NM, 20 years old
medical student comes with
C/O headache for the past
10 days . Headache is
continuously occuring daily.
She doesn’t have any other
problems. Currently she is
preparing for her
professional examination.
 Types of
headache
Anxieties
and Time
concerns

Health
History
between Character
attacks

Response Cause
 Types of • Are there several distinct
headaches occurring?
headache

• When did it start

• How often do they
occur and for how long
• Specific time of the
Time day? Nocturnal
variation?
Character
• Describe your headache
• Point exactly which part of the head
• Associated symptoms (nausea and vomiting, visual
disturbances, photophobia, neurological symptoms)
• Pain when combing hair
• Any radiation of the pain

Cause
• Predisposing or trigger factors
• Aggravating and relieving factors
• Menses correlation?
• Family history or past medical history
• Stress and tension?
• Recent head trauma?
 Health between Anxieties and
Response
attacks concern
• Taken any • Are there • How the pt is
medication? periods where coping with the
• Under the the pt feels well situation
medication is • Any current • Family’s views
the pt able to health issues
study being treated
References…
• Murtagh, J., Rosenblatt, J.,
Coleman, J. and Murtagh, C.,
2015. John Murtagh's General
Practice. 6th ed. North Ryde:
McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd.
• Simon, C., 2014. Oxford
Handbook Of General Practice.
4th ed. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.