Cutaneous Allodynia in Primary Headache

A questionnaire study suggests that the condition is most common in migraine, but the study methods are flawed.

To assess the prevalence and severity of cutaneous allodynia in patients with primary headache disorders, these authors developed a 12-item Allodynia Symptom Checklist questionnaire. They did not test it against the gold standard for the assessment of allodynia, quantitative sensory testing. They sent the questionnaire to 24,000 individuals who had reported at least one severe headache in the past year on a previously mailed headache questionnaire.

The response rate was high at 69%. Of responders, 67% reported symptoms consistent with migraine, 9% with probable migraine, 7% with severe tension-type headache, 4% with transformed migraine, 1% with other chronic daily headache, and 12% with unclassified headaches. The prevalences of cutaneous a…

Reviewing Author

Egilius L. H. Spierings, MD, PhD