Man suffering from headache
If you’re suffering from headaches You can find some relief in knowing that you’re not alone.
In a recent study published in The Journal of Headache and Pain More than half of the people worldwide suffer from some form of headache disorder, whether it’s tension, migraine cluster, migraine or any other kind of headache.
“People are prone to headaches for a variety different reasons” claims the Dr. Brandon Strawn, a neurologist working at OSF HealthCare. “There are musculoskeletal issues that cause tension and stress in their necks and shoulders and back Sometimes, people are affected by external factors, changes in weather or exposure to fragrances. Caffeine is one of them. One could consider the rising levels of headaches by looking at the triggers that are increasing. Stress depression, anxiety, and stress are increasing The use of caffeine has grown every decade for the last 50 years. These are the main reasons headaches have been increasing as well. .”
The study was carried out by researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Norway who studied more than 350 articles between 1961 and 2020 to discover how widespread headaches were throughout the world. The majority of the research papers examined people aged between 20 and 65.
In their research, women are found to experience more headaches than males. A total of 17percent of females participating in the study had migraines as an example in contrast to 8.6 percent of males.
“In the general sense, headaches and particularly migraines are more frequent for the female population,” says Dr. Strawn. “There are some theories about hormone-related causes for that. There is evidence that women suffer from migraines more frequently during a specific time of the month or hormone changes later in their lives. Other studies are underway that study the factors that are specific to females versus males, and could contribute to the rise in headaches .”
The study found that around fifteen percent population suffers from headaches every day, and around 7% are migraines. When it comes to treatment it all depends on the kind of headache and the person.
“The most effective method for treating headaches is to look at the root cause,” says Dr. Strawn. “If an primary care physician is able to identify a stressor, or helps manage anxiety, tension or depression-related headaches or tension type headaches, they can organize physical therapy for someone suffering from Cervicogenic headaches (headaches originate out of your neck) or they may recommend the first line treatment for migraine. In many instances, they can treat the issue in a short .”
If you suffer from headaches that aren’t a migraine, whether it’s a sporadic sinus headache or an all-out migraine, your hope is not gone. The doctor Dr. Strawn says treatment modalities have improved a lot over the last 40 years.
“I think the key message is that everyone has headaches however there are lots of alternatives to treat headaches as well. If we are able to discover the cause of the headache, treat those triggers and deal with it through the help of a primary physician, that’s the first objective we can achieve,” he says. “Beyond that, there are plenty of alternatives to manage the symptoms and pain , but by following a structured approach, the majority of patients will be able to find alleviation .”
For more details about headaches check outOSF HealthCare .
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