Headache Onset Timing as a Predictor for Comorbid Conditions of Pediatric Primary Headache

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Abstract
Background/Objectives: Pediatric patients with primary headaches frequently exhibit diverse comorbid conditions, often rendering their headaches intractable. Early identification of and intervention for comorbid conditions are crucial for improving prognosis, yet remain challenging. We hypothesized that headache onset timing can predict the presence of these comorbid conditions. Methods: Headache onset timing of 106 pediatric patients (aged 6–17 [median: 13] years) with migraine or tension-type headache and associated comorbidities, including neurodevelopmental and sleep disorders, orthostatic intolerance (OI), and psychosocial factors, was retrospectively analyzed. Results: Headache onset timing was most frequent upon awakening (33.0%), followed by indeterminate (31.1%) and orthostatic (20.8%) onsets. OI (40.6%) and psychosocial factors (38.7%) were the most prevalent comorbid conditions. Psychosocial factors were most common in the awakening (62.9%) and indeterminate (27.3%) onset groups; OI predominated in the orthostatic group (77.3%). Multivariate analysis revealed that psychosocial factors were a significant risk factor for awakening headache (odds ratio [OR]: 4.59, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.80–11.71). OI was a risk factor for orthostatic onset headache (OR: 7.18, 95% CI: 1.92–26.87) and inversely associated with indeterminate headache (OR: 0.15, 95% CI: 0.04–0.54). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that detailed classification of headache onset timing can predict potential risks of specific comorbid conditions in pediatric patients.

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