Primary Headaches and Sleep Disturbances: A Cause or a Consequence?

To evaluate the possible relationship between sleep disturbances and primary headaches.

This prospective study was carried out in a random group of patients with active primary headaches (case group) and a control group. Patients with active primary headaches were further stratified into two groups: patients with migraine and patients with tension-type headache (TTH). Participants were questioned using the following standardized tests: Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), Berlin Sleep Apnea Questionnaire (BSAQ), and a custom-made headache questionnaire. The results of the questionnaires were compared among patients with TTH, patients with migraine, and age- and sex-matched controls.

Of the 143 participants, 22.4% had TTH, 30.8% were diagnosed with migraine, and 46.9% did not have a diagnosed headache disorder. Patients with TTH were more likely to have insomnia (ISI score > 7) than patients with migraine (75% vs 50%, respectively) or controls (75% vs 37.3%, respectively) (P = .002). Frequency of poor sleep quality (global PSQI score ≥ 6) was significantly highest in the TTH group (87.5%), while the migraine and control groups had better sleep quality (47.7% and 43.3%, respectively) (P = .0001). TTH patients were more likely to have insufficient sleep (sleep efficiency < 85%) (53.1%) than those with migraine (25%) or the control group (29.9%) (P = .025).

Patients who suffered from TTH were more likely to have insomnia than patients with migraine or controls. Nearly all patients with TTH had poor sleep quality, which was also observed in approximately half of the individuals in the migraine and control groups. Three-quarters of patients in the TTH group and more than half in the migraine group indicated inadequate sleep as a trigger factor for headache.