FOP differentiates migraineurs from those without headache and plays a significant role in primary headache, particularly in headache-related disability. Findings build upon and extend those from previous chronic pain studies and highlight the need for longitudinal and experimental studies to further explore this construct in headache.
The objective of this study was to assess whether migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) are best viewed as discrete entities or points on a severity continuum using taxometric analysis. Historically, classification systems have conceptualized the primary headache disorders of migraine and TTH as fundamentally different disorders that are differentiated by their characteristic symptom profiles and, as such, imply differing pathophysiologies and required treatments. Despite this categorical nosology, findings continue to emerge suggesting that migraine and TTH instead reflect dimensions of severity within the same headache construct. However, few studies have assessed this issue using taxometric statistical analyses or investigated how this taxonomic structure varies as a function of age and headache frequency. We conducted a latent-mode factor analysis of headache symptomatology obtained from 3449 individuals with headache from 2 previous, large-scale cross-sectional studies of primary headache sufferers (Martin et al., 2005, and Smitherman and Kolivas, 2013). Stratified taxometric analyses suggest that the validity of a categorical vs dimensional classification varies as a function of sample characteristics. Specifically, graphical results revealed that high headache frequency (≥ 15 d/mo) and younger age (≤ 24 years old) were associated with unimodal distributions suggestive of a dimensional construct of primary headache, whereas lower headache frequency and older age were associated with bimodal distributions characteristic of discrete diagnostic entities. Conceptualizing primary headache as a severity continuum was supported for young adults and those with frequent headaches. The distinctions of a categorical classification system were supported for adults (> 24 years old) and those with infrequent headache.
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often comorbid with chronic migraine (CM) and chronic tension-type headache (CTTH). Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral psychotherapies, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and venlafaxine have demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of PTSD. Amitriptyline, topiramate, sodium valproate, and botulinum toxin A are efficacious for treatment of chronic daily headache (CDH). Treatment studies on individuals with CDH and comorbid PTSD, however, are limited. As such, multiple therapeutic agents or modes of interventions typically are necessary, such that comprehensive treatment simultaneously utilizes approaches with established efficacy for each individual condition.
Psychiatric disorders often co-occur with migraine, and these comorbid conditions compound disability and are risk factors for medication overuse and migraine progression. For these reasons, attention to psychiatric comorbidities in clinical practice is of paramount importance. Assessment of depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders is recommended, focusing on the core cognitive and emotional symptoms of the comorbidities and using measures validated among medical patients. Pharmacologic treatment of migraine and comorbid psychiatric conditions is challenging owing to a lack of agents with proven efficacy for both conditions, side effect profiles that may exacerbate one condition, and potential drug interactions. Existing data suggest that migraineurs with psychiatric symptomatology can obtain positive outcomes with appropriate preventive medications, behavioral interventions for headache or the comorbid condition, or a combination thereof. Keywords: anxiety, comorbidity, depression, insomnia, migraine, pharmacotherapy, relaxation, stress management
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.