Constipation is associated with tension type headache in women

Abstract

The most common complaints of women evaluated in outpatient clinics are headache or abdominal pain. Primary headaches and functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) are heterogeneous groups of diseases that are extremely prevalent, and can have a huge social and economic burden on society, as well as being the cause a large proportion of job losses 1 . The frequency of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a sub-group of FGID, in the community is 15-23% and the incidence of headache is about 47% 2,3 . As for comorbidities, the results of many studies have shown that 34-50% of ABSTRACT Tension-type headaches (TTH) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are comorbid diseases affecting, especially, women. One of the underlying mechanisms for both is autonomic dysfunction in the brain-gut axis. We aimed to evaluate the factors accompanying TTH and their relation to functional gastrointestinal disorders. Methods: Women diagnosed with TTH were questioned about headache pattern and severity, and accompanying factors, as well as being screened for IBS according to the Rome III criteria. The participants were divided into two groups: constipation-dominant IBS (IBS-C) group and "others", with a total of 115 individuals included in the study. Results: Of the 115 patients; 48 (41.8%) of the women had IBS-C criteria while 67 (58.2%) described mixed-type IBS or diarrhea-dominant IBS. There were no significant differences in terms of mean age (p = 0.290), body mass index (p = 0.212), visual analog scale (p = 0.965), duration of attacks (p = 0.692), and episodic/chronic type (p = 0.553). Osmophobia was seen in 43.5%; phonophobia in 68.7%, and photophobia in 47.0% of the patients, and only osmophobia was significantly associated in women in the IBS-C group (p = 0.001). Conclusion: In female patients with TTH, a higher level of constipation was detected. The relationship of these two diseases suggests that they may share common mechanisms. This is the first study showing the relationship of osmophobia with constipation. RESUMOAs cefaléias do tipo tensional (TTH) e a síndrome do intestino irritável (IBS) são comorbidades que afetam especialmente as mulheres. O mecanismo subjacente para ambas é a disfunção autonômica no eixo cérebro-intestino. Nosso objetivo foi avaliar os fatores que acompanham as TTH e sua relação com distúrbios gastrointestinais funcionais (FGID). Métodos: Mulheres com diagnóstico de TTH foram questionadas quanto ao padrão e gravidade da cefaleia, fatores acompanhantes e triadas para IBS de acordo com os critérios de Roma III e foram divididas em dois grupos: grupo com IBS com predominância de constipação (IBS-C) e as demais. Um total de 115 mulheres foram incluídas no estudo. Resultados: Do total de 115 pacientes; 48 (41,8%) das mulheres tiveram os critérios da IBS-C, enquanto 67 (58,2%) tiveram IBS do tipo misto ou IBS com predominância de diarreia. Não houve diferenças significativas em termos de idade média (p = 0,290), índice de massa corporal (IMC) (p = 0,212), escala visual analógica (VAS) (p = 0,965), duração do...

A modulação intestinal como fator relevante no enfrentamento do quadro de depressão

“…Salienta-se, dessa forma, que, no eixo intestino-cérebro, o sistema digestivo e o cérebro possuem uma forte relação, pois se interligam através das sinapses e neurotransmissores, comungando assim terminações nervosas. (Ozan, et al, 2019).…”

Constipation associated to tension type of headache in women

“…Dear Editor, we read the article by Ozan et al about the study of 115 women with tension type headache 1 , of whom 48 had constipation manifestation. We have the following comments and concerns.…”