Chronic Migraine Is Associated With Reduced Household Income and Greater Headache Impact

CHICAGO, October 29, 2010 - New data presented today at The 2010 European Headache and Migraine Trust
International Congress (EHMTIC) shows that persons with chronic migraine
(headache on greater than or equal to 15 days per month) are much more likely
to have annual household incomes below US$30,000 than those with episodic
migraine (headache on < 15 days per month). This difference in household
income may be attributable to the greater adverse headache impact in the
chronic migraine group. Chronic migraine, a condition characterized by
headaches more days than not, afflicts about 1 in 50 Americans. This research
is from the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study (AMPP), the
largest-ever longitudinal study of headache.

The study involved 373 individuals with chronic migraine and 6,554 with
episodic migraine. Those with chronic migraine were more likely to have
average annual household incomes below US$30,000 than those with episodic
migraine (38.3% of chronic migraineurs and 26.5% of episodic migraineurs had
household incomes of less than US$30,000/year). The Headache Impact Test
(HIT-6) measures the burden of headache in areas including work, school,
social life, and feelings such as fatigue, irritability and difficulty with
concentration over the previous month. Those with chronic migraine had an
average score of 64 (indicating "severe impact") and those with episodic
migraine had an average score of 58 (indicating "substantial impact").

Study co-investigator, Dawn C. Buse, PhD, Assistant Professor of
Neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Director of
Behavioral Medicine at the Montefiore Headache Center, Bronx, NY, said,
"These results reinforce the fact that the impact of headache is most
significant among persons with chronic migraine when compared to persons with
episodic migraine. In addition, we find that headache impact is predicted by
headache pain intensity, severity of associated symptoms, and the presence of
depression."

The good news according to study co-investigator, Richard B. Lipton, MD,
Professor of Neurology at Einstein and Director of the Montefiore Headache
Center, is that chronic migraine, its symptoms, and comorbidities including
depression and anxiety are very treatable. Dr. Lipton advises, "Persons
living with chronic migraine should speak with a knowledgeable health care
professional about available treatments."

Background

The American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention study began in 2004 when
questionnaires were mailed to 120,000 U.S. households to identify severe
headache sufferers. A sample of 24,000 severe headache sufferers, identified
in 2004, have been followed annually through 2009. The 2009 survey included
the Headache Impact Test (HIT-6), a self administered, six-item questionnaire
that measures pain severity, activity limitations, fatigue, irritability and
difficulty concentrating due to headache. Total sum scores range from 36-78
in the following categories: "no/little impact" (<50), "some impact" (50-55),
"substantial impact" (56-59), and "severe impact" (60+).

Migraine is a neurological syndrome characterized by severe, painful
headaches that are often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and increased
sensitivity to light and sound. Headaches may last for hours or even days.
The pain is often on one side of the head and pulsating. Headaches may be
preceded by aura: sensory warning signs such as flashes of light, blind
spots, tingling in the arms and legs.

Migraine can place a significant burden on headache sufferers, their
families, and society. And chronic migraine has been demonstrated to have
even greater impact than episodic migraine on a range of factors including
socioeconomic status (employment status, household income),
headache-related-disability (missed time from work, family and leisure
activities), health-related quality of life, and direct and indirect medical
costs. It has also been established that those with chronic migraine are more
likely to have additional comorbid medical and psychiatric conditions.

Sponsorship: The American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study is
funded through a research grant to the National Headache Foundation from
Ortho-McNeil Neurologics, Inc., Titusville, NJ. Additional analyses for this
work were supported by Allergan Inc., Irvine, CA.

To learn more about severe headaches, visit the National Headache
Foundation website at www.headaches.org, or find a headache specialist
in your area.

Executive Director Robert R. Dalton, National Headache Foundation, +1-312-274-2670, rdalton at Headaches.org