As few as half of all patients reporting migraine-like symptoms have been formally diagnosed with migraine headaches. Underdiagnosis and treatment may be due to atypical presentation with lack of the best-known symptoms of migraine. Migraines can also mimic other neurological, ocular, or even gastrointestinal conditions. Many patients with migraines are misdiagnosed with sinusitis or tension-type headaches, or suspected of having glaucoma, meningitis, epilepsy, a stroke, brain aneurysm, or a malignancy in the brain.
In making your diagnosis, how do you differentiate between migraine and those neurological conditions that share similar symptoms? How do you think more migraine patients can receive a correct diagnosis?
The ID Migraine Questionnaire (Mattos et al, 2017):
1. Has a headache limited your activities for a day or more in the last three months?
2. Are you nauseated or sick to your stomach when you have a headache?
3. Does light bother you when you have a headache?
the POUND Questionnaire (Tejero et al, 2018):
P: Is your headache throbbing?
O: How long do your headaches last?
U: Do your headaches occur on one side of your head?
N: Do you experience nausea and/or vomiting with your headaches?
D: Do you miss work or school because of your headache?
and the
Migraine-Screen Questionnaire (MS-Q) (Láinez et al, 2010):
1. Do you have frequent or intense headaches?
2. Do your headaches usually last more than four hours?
3. Do you usually suffer from nausea when you have a headache?
4. Does light or noise bother you when you have a headache?
5. Do your headaches limit any of your physical or intellectual activities?