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When is neuroimaging indicated for headache?

1. Your Nomination - Please briefly describe in your own words the question about a health care test or treatment that interests or concerns you:

When is neuroimaging indicated for headache?

2. Why do you think your question is important? (you may select more than one category if appropriate)
 My question relates to a very common disease or problem
 People with this disease or problem have considerable health or financial hardships
 There is uncertainty about how well the test, treatment, or intervention works
 There is significant potential for side effects/harms using this test, treatment, or intervention
 Funding of this test, treatment, or intervention is uncertain or variable
 There is unequal access or application of this health care intervention across providers
 There is potential for cost savings from better information on this subject
 This is a new technology/development
 There is new evidence of clinical and/or cost effectiveness for this test, treatment, or intervention
 Other
3. What illness or health condition is related to your question? (You can also specify a particular health-promoting activity, such as breast-feeding)
Headache in adults, adolescents and children.
4. What group(s) or patients does your question apply to?
Adults, adolscents and children presenting with headache.
5. What is the specific purpose of the health care test or treatment you have a question about? (mark all that you think apply)
Identification of a disease or condition:
 Screening or diagnosis/identification for a particular disease, or risk assessment for a disease
 Risks or harms that can come from a disease identification tool or test
 Diagnostic tests and tools
 Diagnosis of co-occurring diseases
 Intervention (such as a drug treatment, therapy, device)
 Management of a condition or particular system of care
 Delivery of a health service
 Referral
 Risks or harms associated with treatment of a disease or condition
 Prevention or health promotion
 Specific population health concerns, such as ethnic group or gender
 Other
 Dont know
6. Does your question include a comparison of different health care approaches?
Yes
If yes, please list what you would like to see compared:
comparison of gernalized neuroimaging versus more selective based on signs and symptoms. The question also includes a comparison ot the different neuroimaging possibilities such as xray, CT with and without contrast, MRI and PET scans.
7. Desired Health Improvements: If you question focuses on:
Identification of a particular disease or condition, what improvements in identification or diagnosis would you like to see?
Clear guidance on the value, or lack therof, of neuroimaging in patients with headache presenting in primary care settings.

Treatment of a particular disease or condition, what improvements in patient symptoms or problems would you like to see?
8. Harms: Are there risks, side effects, or harms you are concerned about? If yes, please specify what those are:
There are costs involved with neuroimaging as well as problems with access to some techologies in rural and other isolated communities. There are also potential harms in missing treatable, serious causes of headache.
9. Based on your answers to the previous questions, what research question(s) would you like to have answered?
Given what set of signs and symtoms and patient characteristics, is neuroimaging safe to defer in a patient presenting in primary care with headache?
10. Are there health-care focused, disease-focused, or patient-focused organizations that you see as being relevant to this issue? Who do you think we should contact as we consider your nomination?
American Academy of Family Physicians
11. Other Information About You (OPTIONAL) In order to help us understand the context of your health care question, it would be helpful to know more about you. The answers you give will not influence the progress of your suggestion. Thank you.
a. Please choose a description that best describes your role or perspective: (you may select more than one category if appropriate)


b. Is there any other information about you that is relevant to your question?


c. Are you making a suggestion as an individual or on behalf of an organization?
 Individual
 Organization
Page last reviewed November 2017
Page originally created March 2008

Internet Citation: When is neuroimaging indicated for headache?. Content last reviewed November 2017. Effective Health Care Program, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD.
https://effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov/get-involved/nominated-topics/when-is-neuroimaging-indicated-for-headache

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