Assessment of Prevalence of Migraine and Associated Disability in Selected Urban Population of Ludhiana City in Punjab

Abstract

Background: Neurological disorders are ranked as the leading cause of DALYs in 2015, most prevalent being tension-type headache, migraine, medication overuse headache, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Therefore, this community based cross sectional study was planned to determine the prevalence and disability due to migraine in the Urban Field Practice Area of Department of Community Medicine, DMCH, Ludhiana. Methodology: A total of 465 adults (> =18 years) from a population of 11,179 were interviewed by house to house visits. The questionnaire to measure disability among diagnosed patients was prepared based on the diagnostic criteria of migraine by International Headache Society and Migraine Disability Assessment Test (MIDAS). Results: Out of 465 adults, 104 (22.4%) were found to have migraine, out of which 21 had migraine with aura. The prevalence was found to be greater in females (26.1%) than males (10.6%). After applying MIDAS, it was found that 70.2% were facing moderate disability whereas severe disability was seen in 24.0 %. Only 12 out of 104 study subjects had prior knowledge regarding their migraine status. Conclusion: This study not only puts light on the proportion and disability due to migraine but also on the need to make people aware about their health condition.

Keywords

• Urban
• migraine
• prevalence
• disability