Background: Optimization of neuroimaging practices for headache is considered a national priority; however, nationwide patterns and predictors of neuroimaging use for headache in the US emergency departments (EDs) are unknown.
Objective: To analyze temporal neuroimaging utilization trends for adults and children with non-traumatic headache in the US EDs and identify factors predictive of neuroimaging use in this patient population.
Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional study using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Emergency Department Sample database for administrative encounter-level data analysis of a nationwide group of adult and pediatric patients with primary diagnosis of headache (ICD-9CM codes 784.0x, 339.xx, 346.xx) visited the US EDs between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2014. Temporal trends and independent predictors of neuroimaging use (e.g., patient and hospital characteristics, primary payment sources) were determined.
Results: In 2006-2014, a weighted group of 18,146,302 patients with a primary diagnosis of non-traumatic headache visited US EDs. Advanced neuroimaging utilization increased from 18.6% (n = 350,777) to 34.8% (n = 756,895) in the total group, from 18.8% (n = 314,646) to 36.5% (n = 698,080) in the adult subgroup (+94.1%), and from 16.9% (n = 36,131) to 22.0% (n = 58,815) (+30.2%) in the pediatric subgroup (+87.0%) between 2006 and 2014. The strongest predictors of higher neuroimaging utilization were hospital location in the Northeast (OR 3.17, 95% CI 2.67-3.76) or South (OR 2.42, 95% CI 2.03-2.88) regions. Lower utilization of imaging was associated with weekend ED visits (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.92-0.93), female gender (OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.81-0.83), and Medicare, Medicaid, or self-pay (vs. private insurance) encounters.
Conclusion: Neuroimaging utilization in patients with headache in US EDs nearly doubled in 2006-2014, and was used in 34.8% of all ED encounters in 2014. Utilization was higher and increased at faster rates for adults than children. In US EDs, imaging for headache is preferentially performed on commercially insured and male patients, at urban hospitals, in certain geographic regions, and on weekdays, raising concerns regarding disparate imaging use.
Keywords: computed tomography; disparity; emergency department; headache; imaging; utilization.
© 2020 American Headache Society.