Computed Tomography Assessment of the Brain in Patients with Severe Headache without Obvious Neurological Deficit in South East Nigeria.

Background: Headache is a common neurological disorder in the community. As the number of CT scanners increase in poor nations, including Nigeria its use in evaluating patient with headache is becoming a viable option. In developed nations there are guidelines for neuroimaging in patients with headache, which are not available in Nigeria. We designed this study to assess the findings on CT in patients with chronic headache. Methods: We reviewed retrospectively the written reports and CT scans of the brain performed between 2003-2009 at Memfys hospital for neurosurgery and 2006-2009 at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Enugu. Results: Hydrocephalus (7) -10%, tumours 8.6% and aneurysms 8.6% were the main findings. In those less than fifty years, tumours were the commonest finding, while aneurysms/AVM and infarcts were more in those older than 50 years. The commonest finding in females was aneurysm and in males tumours. Conclusion: There is a high diagnostic yield of CT in patients with severe headache, without focal neurological deficit in South East Nigeria.