Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-vdxz6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T07:39:15.123Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Prevalence of Reported Migraine Headaches in Canadian Adolescents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2014

K.E. Gordon
Affiliation:
Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Dalhousie University and IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
J.M. Dooley
Affiliation:
Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Dalhousie University and IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
E.P. Wood
Affiliation:
Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Dalhousie University and IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Objective:

To examine self-reported prevalence data for migraine among adolescent Canadians and to explore how reported migraine treatment varies by age.

Methods:

We analyzed the microdata files of the Canadian National Population Health Survey (1996-1997). Respondents reported whether they had “migraine headaches diagnosed by a health professional”. They also reported whether they received “any treatment or medication for migraine headaches”, with treatments subdivided into drug, diet or “other”.

Results:

99.9% of 173,216 eligible respondents reported whether they had migraine headaches. Migraine was reported by 2.4% of Canadian youth aged 12-14 years and by 5.0% of 15-19 year-olds compared to 7.2% of adults aged 20 years of age (p< 0.0001, chi-square). Active treatment was used by 51.0% - higher by females (53.1%) than males (44.7%) (p<0.0001 chi-square). Treatment was used by 45.1% of 12-14 year-olds, by 45.7% of 15-19 year-olds and by 51.5% of those 20 years (p=0.0027). The nature of the active treatment choice (drug, diet or other) did not significantly vary within the age groups studied.

Conclusion:

We present robust estimates of self-report diagnosed migraine prevalence, derived from a large nationally representative population survey. Estimates of the prevalence of active treatment for migraine provide insight into the burden of migraine within this population.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Canadian Journal of Neurological 2004

References

1.Stang, PE, Osterhaus, JT.Impact of migraine in the United States: data from the National Health Interview Survey. Headache 1993; 33:2935.Google Scholar
2.Bille, B.Migraine in school children. A study of the incidence and short term prognosis, and a clinical, psychological and encephalographic comparison between children with migraine and matched controls. Acta Paediatr 1962;51(Suppl 136):1151.Google Scholar
3.Sillanpää, M, Westerén, I, Urponen, H.[Children with long-term illnesses, disabilities and handicaps in Åboland. Prevalence, social bckground and habilitation services]. Kansanterveytiet Julk M 77, 1984;184. (In Finnish with English summary)Google Scholar
4.Sillanpää, M, Urponen, H.[Children with long-term illnesses, disabilities and handicaps in the Province of Turku and Pori. Prevalence, social background and habilitation services.] Lääkintöhall Tutk 30 1984; 1127. (In Finnish with English summary)Google Scholar
5.Abu-Arefeh, I, Russell, G.Prevalence of headache and migraine in schoolchildren. Br Med J 1994;309:765769.Google Scholar
6.Sillanpää, M.Prevalence of migraine and other headache in Finnish children starting school. Headache 1976;5:288290.Google Scholar
7.Pothmann, R, v. Frankenberg, SV, Mueller, B, Sartory, G, Hellmeier, W.Epidemiology of headache in children and adolescents: evidence of high prevalence of migraine among girls under 10. Int J Behav Med 1994;1:7689.Google Scholar
8.Raieli, V, Raimondo, D, Cammalleri, R, Camarda, R.Migraine headache in adolescents: a student population-based study in Monreale. Cephalgia 1995;15:512.Google Scholar
9.Sillanpää, M.Prevalence of headache in prepuberty. Headache 1983;23:1014.Google Scholar
10.Sillanpää, M, Piekkala, P.Prevalence of migraine and other headaches in early puberty. Scand J Prim Health Care 1984;2:2732.Google Scholar
11.Sillanpää, M, Anttila, P.Increasing prevalence of headache in 7-year-old school children. Headache 1996;36:466470.Google Scholar
12.Sillanpää, M.Changes in the prevalence of migraine and other headaches during the first seven school years. Headache 1983;23:1519.Google Scholar
13.Sillanpää, M, Piekkala, P, Kero, P.Prevalence of headache at preschool age in an unselected child population. Cephalgia 1991;11:239242.Google Scholar
14.Winner, P, Martinez, W, Mante, L, Bello, L.Classification of pediatric migraine: proposed revisions to the IHS criteria. Headache 1995;35:407410.Google Scholar
15.Vahlquist, B, Hackzell, G.Migraine of early onset: a study of thirty-one cases in which the disease first appeared between one and four years of age. Acta Paediatr 1949;38:622636.Google Scholar
16.Statistics, Canada. National Population Health Survey (NPHS), 1996: public use microdata “general” file [machine readable data file]. Ottawa, ON. Statistics Canada. 1998.Google Scholar
17.Statistics, Canada. National Population Health Survey 1996-97: user’s guide for the public use microdata files: household component - 82M0009XPB. Ottawa, ON. Statistics Canada. 1998.Google Scholar
18.Tambay, JL, Catlin, G.Sample design of the national population health survey. Health Rep 1995;7(1):2938.Google Scholar
19.SYSTAT. Chicago, IL 60611: SPSS Inc., 1998.Google Scholar
20.Maytal, J, Young, M, Schechter, A, Lipton, RB.Pediatric migraine and the International Headache Society (IHS) criteria. Neurology 1997;48:602607.Google Scholar
21.Sillanpää, M, Peltonen, T.Occurrence of headache amongst school children in a Northern Finnish community. In: Sicuteri, F (Ed.) Headache: New Vistas. Florence: Biomedical Press 1977; 58.Google Scholar
22.Edmeads, J, Findlay, H, Tugwell, P, et al.Impact of migraine and tension-type headache on life-style, consulting behaviour and medication use: a Canadian population survey. Can J Neurol Sci 1993;20:131137.Google Scholar
23.Dooley, JM, Gordon, KE.Headaches in Childhood. In: Feldman, W (Ed). Evidence Based Pediatrics. B.C. Decker 2000.Google Scholar
24.Dooley, JM, Bagnell, A.The prognosis and treatment of headaches in children - a ten year follow-up. Can J Neurol Sci 1995;22:4749.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25.Gervil, M, Ulrich, V, Olesen, J, Russell, MB.Screening for migraine in the general population: validation of a simple questionnaire. Cephalagia 1998;18:342348.Google Scholar
26.Lenert, LA, Looman, T, Agoncillo, T, et al.Potential validity of conducting research on headache in internet populations. Headache 2002;42:200203.Google Scholar
27.Wolstein, JR, Seshia, SS, Haese, P, et al.Inter-observer agreement in the diagnosis of childhood headache. Headache 1994;34:467470.Google Scholar