Epidemiology of headache in Hong Kong primary-level schoolchildren: questionnaire study.

OBJECTIVE To collect and analyse epidemiological data on childhood headache in the Hong Kong community. DESIGN Questionnaire study. SETTING Three primary schools, Hong Kong. PARTICIPANTS Two thousand, one hundred and twenty pupils from 2156 replied to the questionnaire survey. One hundred and twenty-four pupils who were identified to have suspected recurrent headache were invited to a follow-up medical consultation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Age-groups and prevalence of tension-type and migraine headache, using the diagnostic criteria of the International Headache Society. RESULTS The overall prevalence of headache in the 2120 respondents was 2.8%. The prevalence of tension-type headache, migraine, probable migraine, and unclassified headache were 1.2%, 0.5%, 0.7%, and 0.5%, respectively. The age-specific prevalence of headache from the age of 6 to 13 years showed a steadily increasing trend from childhood to the early teens. CONCLUSION Headache is a common complaint for children, although it may be underrecognised. Further study will be beneficial for providing better management of headache in this population.