Ochoa-Guzmán A, Chiquete E, Vargas-Sánchez Á, Zúńiga-Ramírez C, Ruiz-Sandoval JL

Language: Spanish
References: 17
Page: 352-357
PDF size: 165.17 Kb.

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Frequent headache can impact significantly daily life activities and is associated with an important consumption of drugs for pain relieving. Objective: To describe the point prevalence and demographic risk factors associated with frequent headache of moderate to severe intensity in ambulatory patients who attend non-neurologic clinics in a Mexican tertiary care center. Methods: A total of 496 patients (mean age: 47.8 years, 64.5% women) receiving medical care in non-neurologic clinics were interviewed, excluding those with known neurologic illness, apart from headache. Frequent headache of moderate to severe intensity was defined as the presence of ≥ 1 headache episodes per week, in the previous 3 months, with intensity ≥ 5 in a 0 to 10 analog scale. Logistic regression analyses were constructed to identify associated independently risk factors. Results: Moderate to severe frequent headache was identified in 194 cases (39.1%; 46% in women and 26% in men); 63% used non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs. A significantly higher use of NSAIDs was identified in the female gender, as compared with men (38.6 vs. 25%, respectively; p = 0.002). In a multivariate analysis adjusted for multiple confounders, 4 independent risk factors were identified: age ‹ 45 years, hypertension, female gender and ≤ 6 years of school education. Conclusion: Point prevalence of frequent headache of moderate to severe intensity in ambulatory patients of non-neurologic clinics is high. Although this group of patients is not representative of the general population, it is shown here the health burden that frequent headache can impose as a relevant comorbidity.

REFERENCES

1. Katsarava Z, Dzagnidze A, Kukava M, Mirvelashvili E, Djibuti M, Janelidze M, Jensen R, et al. Lifting The Burden: The Global Campaign to Reduce the Burden of Headache Worldwide and the Russian Linguistic Subcommittee of the International Headache Society. Primary headache disorders in the Republic of Georgia: prevalence and risk factors. Neurology 2009: 73: 1796-803.

2. Stovner L, Hagen K, Jensen R, Katsarava Z, Lipton R, Scher A, Steiner T, et al. The global burden of headache: a documentation of headache prevalence and disability worldwide. Cephalalgia 2007; 27: 193-210.

3. Headache Classification Subcommittee of the International Headache Society. The International Classification of Headache Disorders. 2nd. Ed. Cephalalgia 2004; 24(Suppl. 1): 9-160.

4. Manzoni GC, Torelli P. Epidemiological classification and social impact of chronic headache. Intern Emerg Med 2010; 5(Suppl. 1): S1-5.

5. Morillo LE, Alarcon F, Aranaga N, Aulet S, Chapman E, Conterno L, Estevez E, et al. Prevalence of migraine in Latin America. Headache 2005; 45: 106-17.

6. Téllez-Zenteno JF, García-Ramos G, Zermeńo-Pöhls F, Velazquez A; GGSM. Demographic, clinical and comorbidity data in a large sample of 1,147 patients with migraine in Mexico City. J Headache Pain 2005; 6: 128-34.

7. Aromaa M, Sillanpää M, Rautava P, Helenius H. Prevalence of frequent headache in young Finnish adults starting a family. Cephalalgia 1993; 13: 330-7.

8. Hagen K, Vatten L, Stovner LJ, Zwart JA, Krokstad S, Bovim G. Low socio-economic status is associated with increased risk of frequent headache: a prospective study of 22718 adults in Norway. Cephalalgia 2002; 2: 672-9.

9. Rasmussen BK, Jensen R, Schroll M, Olesen J. Epidemiology of headache in a general population-a prevalence study. J Clin Epidemiol 1991; 44: 1147-57.

10. Manzoni GC, Stovner LJ. Epidemiology of headache. Handb Clin Neurol 2010; 97: 3-22.

11. Stovner LJ, Andree C. Prevalence of headache in Europe: a review for the Eurolight project. J Headache Pain 2010; 11: 289-99.

12. Silberstein SD. Sex hormones and headache. Rev Neurol (Paris) 2000; 156(Suppl. 4): 4S30-41.

13. Macgregor EA, Rosenberg JD, Kurth T. Sex-related differences in epidemiological and clinic-based headache studies. Headache 2011; 51: 843-59.

14. Lucchetti G, Peres MF. The prevalence of migraine and probable migraine in a brazilian favela: results of a community survey. Headache 2011; 51: 971-9.

15. De Luca GC, Bartleson JD. When and how to investigate the patient with headache. Semin Neurol 2010; 30: 131-44.

16. Gladstone J, Eross E, Dodick D. Chronic daily headache: a rational approach to a challenging problem. Semin Neurol 2003; 23: 265-76.

17. Evans RW. Headache case studies for the primary care physician. Med Clin North Am 2003; 87: 589-607.