Unlike traditional studies on comorbidity of headaches and migraines, during the Norwegian study for 12 months, the relationship between headache and gastrointestinal disturbances was studied among 43,782 adult patients.
The trial participants were divided according to the presence and number of symptoms on the part of the digestive tract: no symptoms, several or many symptoms.
OSH reflects the risk of headache in individuals with a large number of gastrointestinal symptoms and in people with no symptoms. OSH in the absence of symptoms was 1.0. The prevalence of headaches in general, migraines and non-migraine pains, including among people with many symptoms, was higher than among those who did not complain of digestive disorders.
For patients suffering from chronic headaches, comorbid somatic and mental disorders are characteristic. These include chronic pain syndrome (for example, arthritis and fibromyalgia), gastrointestinal disorders, anxiety disorders, and depression. More comorbid disorders are characteristic of migraine.
Migraine is associated with an increased risk of developing hypertension, chest pain and coronary heart disease. Among women suffering from migraine with aura, the risk of ischemic stroke is almost twice as high as in the population, although the absolute risk of stroke is quite low.
The risk of coronary heart disease is higher in women with migraine with aura, and in men with any form of migraine. The risk of developing cardiovascular pathology dictates the need for measures to correct modifiable risk factors among patients suffering from migraine, especially migraine with aura.
Key points:
– Migraine with aura in women is associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke and cardiovascular diseases. Migraine also increases the risk of major cardiovascular events and myocardial infarction in men.
– Open oval opening is detected in 2/3 of patients suffering from migraine with aura, and in half of patients suffering from migraine without aura. After the elimination of the defect, the migraine course improves only to a small extent.
– 3/4 of patients with fibromyalgia have headaches, among which is the most common migraine. – Mood disorders and anxiety disorders occur 2 times more often in patients suffering from migraine.
– Frequent migraine attacks are characteristic of people who are overweight or obese.
– Gastrointestinal disorders such as reflux disease, diarrhea, bloating and nausea are more common in patients suffering from headaches.
– A clear comorbidity of migraine and epilepsy has not been established.