Headaches: Three billion people affected

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According to a new study, three billion people worldwide suffer from headaches—a figure that has remained virtually unchanged over the past 30 years. This results in a significant loss of quality of life and high costs for social welfare systems. Thanks to new therapies, the prognosis is favourable, at least for migraines.

They can be sharp and stabbing or dull and throbbing, affecting the whole head or just part of it: there are more than 200 types of headaches, the most common being tension headaches and migraines. According to the study, which has just been published in The Lancet Neurology and analyzed figures from 2023, almost one in three people worldwide suffers from a headache disorder.

Restrictions in everyday life and at work

The study also determined the health impairments caused by headache disorders in those affected – measured in “years lived with disability,” i.e., years in which headache disorders noticeably restrict people in their everyday activities and well-being.

Although tension headaches are almost twice as common, about 90 percent of these years of health impairment due to headache disorders are attributable to migraine. In 2023, this amounted to an estimated 40.9 million years worldwide. The study also shows that women are more frequently affected by headaches than men and that the health impairment is generally greater.

Many younger people affected

In Austria, too, many people suffer from headache disorders—one million of them from migraine, says neurologist Gregor Brössner, head of the headache clinic at the Medical University of Innsbruck, with more women than men affected here as well. “Around the age of 30, one in three women in Austria suffers from migraines, which is of course an incredibly high number,” says Brössner.

Migraines last for years and decades, according to the neurologist, during a phase of life when many people are fully engaged in their careers and starting their own families. Although tension headaches are more common, the health restrictions and stress associated with migraine attacks are much greater. Symptoms include pulsating, throbbing headaches, nausea, and sensitivity to light and noise. For many sufferers, this results in regular sick leave and a severe reduction in quality of life.

Effective prophylaxis for migraines

However, according to Brössner, there have been significant advances in the treatment of migraines in recent years. Various prophylactic drugs are now available: monoclonal antibodies, which are administered at regular intervals by injection. “In Austria, we are in the fortunate position of being able to offer all these new therapies to our patients who need them,” explains the neurologist. The costs are covered by health insurance, and it is also possible to switch between preparations to find an effective one.

Up to 80 percent of those affected benefit from this type of therapy. Data collected from the Austrian Migraine Patient Registry shows that the frequency and intensity of migraine attacks decrease significantly as a result. Patients who have four or more migraine attacks per month are eligible for such therapies. However, Brössner says that there is still room for improvement in the prescription of these therapies, both nationally and internationally. The figures in the current study on headache disorders therefore do not yet reflect prophylaxis.

Headaches caused by painkillers

With regard to the treatment of headaches, Brössner generally recommends consulting a specialist if the quality of life is permanently impaired by the headache disorder. For tension headaches, which are also widespread and can be triggered by stress, sleep disorders, or tension in the neck or jaw area, there is currently no prophylactic therapy, but there are other treatment options.

Pain medication, relaxation exercises, dietary changes, sleep therapy, and physical therapy can help. Medical advice can be crucial for people who suffer from tension headaches regularly. This is because frequent use of painkillers can lead to what is known as overuse headache. This overuse headache usually occurs after ten days of pain medication per month. Headache symptoms are widespread worldwide: according to the current study, about one-fifth of health impairment due to headache disorders is attributable to overuse headache.