About Migraine

How do you know you might have a migraine?

Migraine – Who does it affect?

• Thirty-six million Americans, about 12% of the population, suffer from migraine headaches.
• One in four households in America has a member with migraine.
• Migraine is 3 times more common in women than men. Migraine affects 30% of women over a lifetime.
• Although most people with migraine have a few attacks or less per month, 3% of the population have chronic migraine. Chronic migraine indicates the presence of at least 15 days of headache each month for at least 6 months.

The Burden of Migraine

• Migraine costs the United States more than $20 billion each year. Costs are attributed to direct medical expenses (e.g. doctor visits, medications) and indirect expenses (e.g. missed work, lost productivity).
• Migraine is disabling.
• The World Health Organization places migraine as one of the 20 most disabling medical illnesses on the planet.
• Chronic migraine is even more disabling.
• Those with migraine are more likely to have depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, other pain conditions, and fatigue.

Current Drug-Based Migraine Treatments are Inadequate

• There is no cure for migraine. Treatments are aimed at reducing headache frequency and stopping individual headaches when they occur.
• Prophylactic treatments (to reduce headache frequency) may include avoidance of migraine triggers, medications, physical therapies, and behavioral therapies.
• Abortive treatments (taken when a patient has a headache) include over-the-counter pain relievers and prescription medications.
• Although prophylactic and abortive treatments help many people with migraine, they are far from perfect. Undoubtedly, better treatments are needed.
• Prophylactic medications reduce headache frequency by 1/2 in only about 40% of patients who take these medications.
• Medication side effects often limit the use of migraine medications.
• Undoubtedly, alternatives to drugs are needed.