Population-based pace study: headache frequency and disease perception in adult subjects with headache

• Published in: Neurological sciences 2010-06, Vol.31 (Suppl 1), p.149-151
• Main Authors: Torelli, P., Abrignani, G., Berzieri, L., Castellini, P., Ferrante, T., Lambru, G., Latte, L., Russo, M., Zani, S., Manzoni, G. C.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Attitude to Health; Chi-Square Distribution; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Headache Disorders - epidemiology; Headache Disorders - physiopathology; Headache Disorders - psychology; Headaches; Health Surveys; Humans; Italy - epidemiology; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Neurology; Neuroradiology; Neurosciences; Neurosurgery; Oral Communication; Perception; Psychiatry; Severity of Illness Index; Sex Factors; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 1590-1874; 1590-3478
• DOI: 10.1007/s10072-010-0312-7

Headache is a disorder that has a very negative personal and social impact. This is an observational, cross-sectional, population-based study conducted in a subject sample ( n  = 904) that was representative of the town of Parma’s general population aged 18 and over. The aim of this study, which is a part of a larger project, was to assess the frequency of headache and the disease perception of subjects with headache during the past year ( n  = 387). The average number of headache days in the past year was 34.9 days and it was comparable in men and in women: 49.9% of subjects had 1–12 days of headache in the past year, 34.9% had 1–52 days, 11.9% had 53–180 days, and 3.4% had more than 180 days. Only three subjects had headache every day during the past year. Only one-third of the subjects with headache in the past year considered themselves headache sufferers. The analysis by gender showed differences between men and women: although the average number of headache days in the past year was comparable in the male and female populations, women considered their headache a disease more often than men did. In addition, the percentage of men who considered their headache a disease did not increase with the increase in the number of headache days in the past year. More in-depth studies on this important aspect are needed.