Evaluating the study design and criteria used for status migrainosus research: A systematic review
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to synthesize the evidence on how "status migrainosus" is defined in research studies in comparison to established International Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD) criteria. BACKGROUND: Current ICHD-3 criteria define status migrainosus as a headache attack occurring in a patient with a history of migraine with or without aura that is typical of previous attacks except for its duration (>72 h) and severity (debilitating). Despite the ICHD criteria, there are varying inclusion criteria noted in studies enrolling patients with status migrainosus. With this diagnostic uncertainty, there remains difficulty in studying this patient population. METHODS: This systematic review was conducted according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines. Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, All Evidence-Based Medicine Reviews, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform were searched with the end search date of August 29, 2025. We included studies that were original research focused on status migrainosus, published in English after January 1, 1988, and also included diagnostic criteria to define this condition. The abstracts and full texts were screened by independent reviewers, with a third independent reviewer remaining available to settle disputes. There were 45 studies that underwent full text review, with…
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