The relationship between tension headache and screen exposure in children and adolescents

Background: Primary headaches are idiopathic or genetic conditions without a known secondary cause. Primary tension-type headache is characterized by bilateral, non-throbbing pain, of mild to moderate intensity. Nowadays, with greater exposure to electronics, a relationship was observed between screen time and increased tension headache among children and adolescents. Objective: Elucidate the association between tension-type headache and increased screen exposure among children and adolescents. Methods: A literature review was carried out after analyzing scientific articles from 2014 to 2020, on Scielo, UPTODATE and Pubmed, in Portuguese and English. Results: With technological development and behavioural changes, the use of electronics has grown among children and adolescents. However, its overuse causes consequences such as a sedentary lifestyle, stress, reduced socialization and complaints of headache. In children, the most prevalent primary headaches are tension-type and migraine. The tension-type headache is characterized by bilateral location, in pressure, with photophobia or phonophobia, without nausea or vomiting. The hypothesis that best explains the association between tension headache and screen exposure is that consecutive periods of electronic activities cause sustained muscle tension and pain. Furthermore, there is an influence of genetic factors, diet and psychological stress. Therefore, it is necessary to raise awareness of the importance of an approach to avoid triggers for headache in children, such as controlling screen time and maintaining healthy habits. Conclusions: The correlation between excessive screen time and headache is substantial and admits an educational performance by health professionals to avoid harmful consequences to growth.