Migraine Patients More Likely to be Depressed

A new study suggests that the prevalence of depression among those suffering from migraine is nearly twice as high as for those without the disease. The incidence of depression was up by 8.4 percent men who had migraines against 3.4 percent who didn’t. In women, the prevalence was 12.4 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively.

The study also found reported that younger migraine sufferers were particularly at risk for depression. Unmarried individuals and migraine sufferers who had difficulties with daily activities also had high odds of depression.

According to the lead author, Professor Esme Fuller-Thomson, Sandra Rotman Endowed Chair at the University of Toronto's Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, women with migraines who were younger than 30 had six times the odds of depression in comparison to sufferers who were aged 65 and over.

Researchers looked at the data of 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey to examine gender-specific associations between migraine and depression. The study found that the prevalence of migraines was much higher in women than men, with one in every seven women, compared to one in every 16 men, reporting that they had migraines.

The study appeared in the journal Depression Research and Treatment.

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