HEADACHE IN CHILDREN: A COMMON DISABILITY IN OPHTHALMOLOGY OPD

Aim: To describe the characteristics of headache in children and its association with refractive errors presenting to the ophthalmology outpatient department of a tertiary care center.Methods: This descriptive,questionnaire-based,crosssectional study was conducted from January 2023 to January 2024 in a tertiary care hospital.A total of 200 children aged 6–18 years presenting with headache were enrolled.All participants underwent a headache-related questionnaire (22 yes/no questions in both English and the local language) and a comprehensive ophthalmologic evaluation including visual acuity, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), ocular alignment, slit-lamp examination, and fundus evaluation. Results: Of the 200 children, 60% were boys and 40% girls. Myopia was the most common refractive error (71%), followed by hypermetropia (16%) and astigmatism (13.2%). Nearly two-thirds of children had headache attributed to refractive errors (HARE). Myopia showed a statistically significant association with frontal headache of longer duration compared to other headache causes.Family history of headache was not significantly associated with HARE.Prolonged screen time emerged as an important risk factor. Conclusion: Refractive errors, particularly myopia, are a significant cause of headache in children.Routine ophthalmologic evaluation is essential in all paediatric;headache cases to enable timely diagnosis and management.