Headache prevalence among adolescents--the German DMKG headache study

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Epidemiology
• Public Health

Background:

• Headache disorders are prevalent in adolescents.
• Understanding the epidemiology of headache in this age group is crucial for public health initiatives.
• Previous studies may not fully capture the prevalence due to varying diagnostic criteria.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the 3-month prevalence of headache, migraine, and tension-type headache (TTH) in German adolescents aged 12-15 years.
• To compare prevalence rates between genders and explore associations with sociodemographic factors.
• To assess the impact of modified diagnostic criteria on migraine prevalence estimates.

Main Methods:

• A population-based cross-sectional study involving 3324 students from 20 schools in Germany.
• Administered a questionnaire compliant with revised International Headache Society (IHS) criteria, including sociodemographic and headache-specific modules.
• Utilized both strict IHS criteria and modified criteria (shortened migraine duration) for diagnosis.

Main Results:

• The overall 3-month headache prevalence was 69.4% (girls 78.9%, boys 59.5%).
• Migraine prevalence was 2.6% (strict IHS) to 6.9% (modified criteria), significantly higher in girls (9.3%) than boys (4.4%).
• Probable migraine affected 12.6% of adolescents, and tension-type headache (TTH) affected 4.5%.

Conclusions:

• Recurrent headaches and primary headache disorders are common among German adolescents, especially girls.
• Migraine and probable migraine are more prevalent in females, suggesting a need for gender-specific considerations.
• The use of modified diagnostic criteria significantly increases migraine prevalence estimates in this population.