IHS Criteria for Migraine

Level: Continuing Medical Education.

The official International Headache Society or "IHS" criteria for headache are:

1. Migraine

Recurrent headaches separated by symptom-free intervals and accompanied by any three of the following:

abdominal pain

complete relief after sleep

nausea or vomiting

aura (visual, sensory, motor)

hemicrania

throbbing, pulsatile quality

and/or positive family history of migraine.

1.1 Migraine without aura

1.2 Migraine with aura

1.8 Transformed migraine (chronic migraine)

1.8.1 With medicaiton overuse

1.8.2 Without medication overuse

2. Tension type headache

2.1 Episodic tension-type headache

2.2 Chronic tension-type headache

2.2.1 With medication overuse

2.2.2 Without medication overuse

3. Cluster Headache and chronic paroxysmal hemicrania

3.1 Cluster headache

3.2 Chronic paroxysmal hemicrania

4. Chronic daily headache unassociated with structural lesion

4.7 New daily persistent headache

4.7.1 With medication overuse

4.7.2 Without medication overuse

4.8 Hemicrania continua

4.8.1 With medication overuse

4.8.2 Without medication overuse

References:

Dialogues in Neurotherapeutic. Identification and prevention of primary headaches. Oct 2001, 1, 4