Risk of the recurrent headache and migraine appearance within the family

The aim of this research was to determine the risk for family appearance of the recurrent headache (non-migraine and migraine).

The research was conducted in Vojvodina, the Northern Province of Serbia. The population of Vojvodina is around 2 million people belonging to more than 20 different ethnic groups. During the 20-year period (1988-2008), 30,363 children aged 3 to 17 years were tested, independent of their place of birth. The presence of headaches similar to those tested was compared among all the members of the family within three generations.

Positive family data of the recurrent headaches were detected among 98.6% children with migraine headaches, 64.7% children with non-migraine headaches, and 32.4% children without recurrent headaches. The relation among the members of the nuclear family (contingency quotient of 0.429) was significantly stronger than the relation to the members of wider family (contingency quotient of 0.338).

The probability of a child having the migraine headache rather than the non-migraine one was very high for parents and high for father's mother, while it was not significant for mother's mother, mother's father and father's father, having similar recurrent headaches.