MigraineMind research summary
Global, regional, and national burden of migraine and tension-type headache, 1990–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016
The Lancet Neurology | 2018
Systematic review / meta-analysisSummary
Headaches are a significant global health issue, particularly migraine and tension-type headache. In 2016, nearly three billion people experienced these headaches worldwide. Of those, 1.89 billion had tension-type headache and 1.04 billion had migraine. Despite the lower prevalence, migraine caused significantly more disability. It accounted for 45 million years lived with disability (YLDs), while tension-type headache caused only 7 million YLDs. Women aged 15 to 49 years experienced the greatest burden, with migraine leading to 20 million YLDs. This group represented 11% of all YLDs for headaches. Data showed a relationship between disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and socio-demographic index (SDI). Higher SDI correlated with increased DALYs for both headache types. This study highlights the need for more attention to headache disorders in health policy. Future studies should gather more data to strengthen these findings and support enhanced migraine treatment efforts. Clinical relevance: This research highlights the significant disability burden of migraine and tension-type headache, emphasizing the need for improved treatment strategies and health policy focus.
Key Learning Points
- Headaches, particularly migraines, affect nearly three billion people globally, with a significant impact on quality of life and disability.
- Migraine causes more disability than tension-type headache, with 45 million years lived with disability compared to 7 million.
- Women aged 15 to 49 years are most affected by migraines, representing 11% of all headache-related disability.
- There is a link between socio-economic status and the burden of headache disorders, with higher socio-demographic indices associated with increased disability.
- There is a critical need for improved treatment strategies and health policy focus on headache disorders to address this global health issue.
Original research
Read the original publication and review its full methods and findings on PubMed.
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