Validation of a new instrument for determining migraine prevalence

Abstract

To provide a reliable instrument for use in large population surveys, we developed a short questionnaire based on existing International Headache Society diagnostic criteria and administered the questionnaire to 50 consecutive patients seeking evaluation at a university-based headache clinic. A single neurologist subsequently examined all patients. Based only on the questionnaires, reviewers scored each patient as having migraine with aura, migraine without aura, or nonmigrainous headache. High predictive validity and low interobserver variability between the examining neurologist and the independent reviewers suggest that the questionnaire may be quite useful as a survey instrument.