Ear acupuncture can be a useful mean for controlling migraine pain. It has been shown that a technique called the Needle Contact Test (NCT) can identify the most efficacious ear acupoints for reducing current migraine pain through just a few seconds of needle contact. The majority of the points were located on the antero-internal part of the antitragus (area M) on the same side of pain. The aim of this study was to verify the therapeutic value of area M and to compare it with an area of the ear (representation of the sciatic nerve, area S) which probably does not have a therapeutic effect on migraine attacks. We studied 94 females suffering from migraine without aura, diagnosed according to the ICHD-II criteria, during the attack. They were randomly subdivided into two groups: in group A, tender points located in area M, positive to NCT were inserted; in group B, the unsuitable area (S) was treated. Changes in pain intensity were measured using a VAS scale at various times of the study. During treatment, there was a highly significant trend in the reduction of the VAS value in group A (Anova for repeated measures: p < 0.001), whereas no significance was observed in group B. VAS values were significantly lower in group A than in group B at 10, 30, 60 and 120 min after needle insertion. This study suggests that the therapeutic specificity of auricular points exists and is linked to the somatotopic representation of our body on the ear.

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Headache disorders are considered the second leading cause of years lived with disability worldwide, and 90% of people have a headache episode at least once a year, thus representing a relevant public health priority. As the pharmacist is often the first and only point of reference for people complaining of headache, we carried out a survey in a nationwide sample of Italian pharmacies, in order to describe the distribution of migraine or non-migraine type headaches and medicines overuse among people entering pharmacies seeking for self-medication; and to evaluate the association, in particular of migraine, with socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, and with the pathway of care followed by the patients. A 14-item questionnaire, including socio-demographic and clinical factors, was administered by trained pharmacists to subjects who entered a pharmacy requesting self-medication for a headache attack. The ID Migraine™ Screener was used to classify headache sufferers in four classes. From June 2016 to January 2017, 4424 people have been interviewed. The prevalence of definite migraines was 40%, significantly higher among women and less educated people. About half of all headache sufferers and a third of migraineurs do not consider their condition as a disease and are not cared by any doctor. Among people seeking self-medication in pharmacies for acute headache attacks, the rate of definite or probable migraine is high, and a large percentage of them is not correctly diagnosed and treated. The pharmacy can be a valuable observatory for the study of headaches, and the first important step to improve the quality of care delivered to these patients.

Aims: This study aims to plug the gap about how young people understand their direct and indirect experience with alcohol by investigating the prevalent images of alcohol among 15-year-olds. The study also aims to clarify the position of young Italians towards traditional Italian drinking culture. Methods: Twenty-two focus groups were organized in two Italian towns, Torino and Cosenza. The focus groups (FGs) used the Reception Analytical Group Interview (RAGI) method, wherein respondents are invited to discuss after seeing video clips used as a stimulus. The material thus collected was analysed through an approach that takes both the participants' interpretative processes and their socio-cultural environment into consideration. Findings: Using 'drinking situations' as an analytical tool, it was found that young people's images about drinking are still in line with tradition, as are the importance assigned to social drinking and the stigma attached to intoxication. Young people also appear to be aware of the negative consequences of drinking, even if the risks related to pharmaceutical use seem to be underestimated. Conclusions: Results cast doubt on the supposed convergence of drinking patterns within Europe and provide useful insights for the development of alcohol use and abuse policies and prevention.

Aim This article compares adolescents' images of alcoholism in two different drinking geographies, namely Helsinki (Finland) and Turin (Italy), with the aim to better understand the persisting variance in youth drinking within Europe. Design Altogether 28 focus group interviews were conducted at schools among 15-year-old pupils (N=145). To assure reliable qualitative comparison across language boundaries, we applied a structured qualitative focus-group methodology called the Reception Analytical Group Interview (RAGI). Conclusions Collectivist images of alcoholism can be considered more protective in terms of alcohol-related risk behaviour as they 1) emphasise interpersonal responsibility, 2) enhance the value of norms and traditions, and 3) highlight causes of alcoholism which are beyond the control of the individual (that is, contextual, social and inherent in the substance), making the attitude towards alcohol more cautious. A greater emphasis on the individual competence may correspondingly result in a lower perception about the risks of drinking.

Acupuncture has a long tradition of use for the treatment of many pain conditions, including headache. Its effectiveness has been studied mainly for primary headaches, particularly for migraine and tension-type headache (TTH). Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has two diagnostic frameworks for headaches: meridian diagnoses, based on the location of the pain and on the meridians (or channels) that pass through it; syndrome diagnoses, dependent on external or internal factors and on the characteristics of the pain. The four meridians involved in headache are Shaoyang (TE-GB channels, on the temporal sides of the head); Taiyang (SI-BL channels, occiput); Yangming (LI-ST channels, forehead) and Jueyin (PC-LR channels, vertex). The syndromes may be due to excess or deficit. Very generally, the excess syndromes correspond in the majority of cases to migraine and the deficit syndromes to TTH. Acupuncture is a complex intervention, which is also characterized by a close interaction between patient and therapist. The complicated system of TCM classification of headaches has frequently generated great diversity among the various therapeutic approaches used in the different studies on acupuncture in headache treatment. Despite these differences, the recent Cochrane systematic reviews on acupuncture in migraine and in TTH suggest that acupuncture is an effective and valuable option for patients suffering from migraine or frequent TTH. Moreover, acupuncture seems to be a cost-effective treatment.