Clinical differentiation between the primary headaches and temporomandibular disorders (TMD) can be challenging. Objectives : To investigate the relationship between TMD and primary headaches by conducting face to face assessments in patients from an orofacial pain clinic and a headache tertiary center. Method : Sample consists of 289 individuals consecutively identified at a headache center and 78 individuals seen in an orofacial pain clinic because of symptoms suggestive of TMD. Results : Migraine was diagnosed in 79.8% of headache sufferers, in headache tertiary center, and 25.6% of those in orofacial pain clinic (p<0.001). Tension-type headache was present in 20.4% and 46.1%, while the TMD painful occurred in 48.1% and 70.5% respectively (p<0.001). Conclusion : TMD is an important comorbidity of migraine and difficult to distinguish clinically from tension-type headache, and this headache was more frequent in the dental center than at the medical center.

This study confirms literature data showing migraine as the most common headache in tertiary care centers. The expressive number of cases of CDH and headaches caused by overuse of analgesics indicates that, starting at the primary care level, patients should be advised to avoid the abuse of symptomatic drugs.

Individuals with CDH recruited from the general population are significantly less likely to have CDH relative to those selected from the headache center. Issues of generalizability are of concern when conducting clinic-based studies on the topic.

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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The comparison of headache features in general population and in tertiary care centers may explain factors associated to the search for medical assistance and the obstacles to such assistance. This study aimed at comparing demographic findings and the frequency of migraine and tension headache (THA) in general population and in a specialized care center. METHOD: All inhabitants of a small village were interviewed about the presence of headache. In one randomly selected region, people who answered positively were evaluated by a team of neurologists specialized in headache. They have also evaluated a number of patients consecutively treated by a specialized center. Diagnoses have followed International Headaches Classification criteria (2004). RESULTS: Participated in this study 1605 inhabitants of the whole village and 258 inhabitants of the region selected as sample. From these, 76 people reporting headache went through a neurological evaluation, as well as 289 patients of the specialized center. THA was the most common headache among general population (77.6%), followed by migraine (61.8%) with diagnostic overlapping in a good percentage of cases. In the outpatient setting the vast majority of patients had migraine (79.8%), while only 20.4% had THA, being the diagnostic association far less common. Frequency of primary headaches in the community and in specialized care centers* Frequência das cefaleias primárias na comunidade e em centros de cuidados especializados