Table 3.
The healthcare utilization module
| Enquiry | Response according to reported headache frequency | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| How often do you have headache (past year)? | All participants n = 2,990 (100%) | At least once a week n = 1,881 (62.9%) | A couple of times a month n = 972 (32.5%) | A couple of times a year n = 129 (4.3%) | Less frequently n = 8 (0.3%) |
| Age, years | |||||
| Mean ± SD | 40.9 ± 11.6 | 40.2 ± 11.7 | 41.8 ± 11.1 | 45.3 ± 12.6 | 48.1 ± 11.2 |
| Proportion, n (%) | |||||
| Gender | |||||
| Male | 468 (15.7%) | 280 (14.9%) | 147 (15.1%) | 37 (28.7%) | 4 (50.0%) |
| Female | 2,522 (84.3%) | 1,601 (85.1%) | 825 (84.9%) | 92 (71.3%) | 4 (50.0%) |
| Headache type | |||||
| Tension-type headache | 1,825 (61.0%) | 1,218 (64.8%) | 563 (57.9%) | 43 (33.3%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Migraine | 1,714 (57.3%) | 1,046 (55.6%) | 588 (60.5%) | 78 (60.5%) | 2 (25.0%) |
| Cluster headache | 103 (3.4%) | 69 (3.7%) | 25 (2.6%) | 7 (5.4%) | 2 (25.0%) |
| Post-traumatic headache | 316 (10.6%) | 281 (14.9%) | 35 (3.6%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0%) |
| Other headache disorder | 271 (9.1%) | 191 (10.2%) | 69 (7.1%) | 11 (8.5%) | 0 (0%) |
| Unknown | 477 (16.0%) | 295 (15.7%) | 154 (15.8%) | 25 (19.4%) | 3 (37.5%) |
| I am able to manage my headache attacks well | |||||
| Strongly agree | 116 (3.9%) | 44 (2.3%) | 51 (5.2%) | 18 (14.0%) | 3 (37.5%) |
| Agree | 961 (32.1%) | 488 (25.9%) | 414 (42.6%) | 55 (42.6%) | 4 (50.0%) |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1,084 (36.3%) | 727 (38.6%) | 319 (32.8%) | 38 (29.5%) | 0 (0%) |
| Disagree | 699 (23.4%) | 513 (27.3%) | 171 (17.6%) | 14 (10.9%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Strongly disagree | 130 (4.3%) | 109 (5.8%) | 17 (1.7%) | 4 (3.1%) | 0 (0%) |
| My headache is a burden on my everyday life | |||||
| Strongly agree | 1061 (35.5%) | 836 (44.4%) | 208 (21.4%) | 16 (12.4%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Agree | 1381 (46.2%) | 857 (45.6%) | 490 (50.4%) | 33 (25.6%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 352 (11.8%) | 138 (7.3%) | 178 (18.3%) | 36 (27.9%) | 0 (0%) |
| Disagree | 156 (5.2%) | 39 (2.1%) | 85 (8.7%) | 31 (24.0%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Strongly disagree | 40 (1.3%) | 11 (0.6%) | 11 (1.1%) | 13 (10.1%) | 5 (62.5%) |
| Acute medication intake | |||||
| Triptans | 991 (33.1%) | 648 (34.4%) | 302 (31.1%) | 39 (30.2%) | 2 (25.0%) |
| Simple analgesics | 2,608 (87.2%) | 1,642 (87.3%) | 866 (89.1%) | 96 (74.4%) | 4 (50.0%) |
| Strong analgesics (opioids) | 256 (8.6%) | 190 (10.1%) | 59 (6.1%) | 6 (4.7%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Other | 240 (8.0%) | 167 (8.9%) | 58 (6.0%) | 13 (10.1%) | 2 (25.0%) |
| Do not use | 731 (24.4%) | 107 (5.7%) | 30 (3.1%) | 9 (7.0%) | 3 (37.5%) |
| Health utilization (primary care)1 | |||||
| Never | 731 (24.4%) | 369 (19.6%) | 313 (32.2%) | 44 (34.1%) | 5 (62.5%) |
| < 1 year | 1,121 (37.5%) | 802 (42.6%) | 283 (29.1%) | 35 (27.1%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| < 5 years | 689 (23.0%) | 418 (22.2%) | 242 (24.9%) | 29 (22.5%) | 0 (0%) |
| > 5 years | 449 (15.0%) | 292 (15.5%) | 134 (13.8%) | 21 (16.3%) | 2 (25.0%) |
| Health utilization (complementary and alternative medicine)2 | |||||
| Never | 1,037 (34.7%) | 518 (27.5%) | 433 (44.5%) | 79 (61.2%) | 7 (87.5%) |
| One treatment/provider | 792 (26.5%) | 478 (25.4%) | 285 (29.3%) | 28 (21.7%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Several treatments/providers | 1,161 (38.8%) | 885 (47.0%) | 254 (26.1%) | 22 (17.1%) | 0 (0%) |
1How long did it take from the time of your debut of headache until you consulted your primary care physician/general practitioner?
2Have you sought a different type of treatment/provider for your headache than your general practitioner/other medical doctor?