Counting the Personal and Economic Costs of Headaches
"People who suffer from migraines do not need to live with a condition that undermines their quality of life. Healthcare providers, such as The Headache Clinic, can help to find the underlying causes of each patient's pain and provide treatment that will prevent the recurrence of the headaches,” concludes Shevel.
(PRWEB) June 10, 2005
This week (5 to 11 June) is National Headache Awareness Week in the US, a platform used by the National Headache Foundation in that country to educate the public about the personal and economic costs of headaches, migraines in particular, and to encourage people who suffer from headaches to seek treatment.
Although no similar initiative exists in South Africa, headaches also take an enormous toll on the country's economy in the form of lost productivity and impact negatively on the professional, personal and social lives of millions of South Africans.
Research from the National Headache Foundation in the US shows that more than 28 million, or nearly 10 percent of, Americans experience migraine headaches of varying intensity.
A comprehensive survey from the US Foundation found that 51 percent of those experiencing migraine headaches had more than 10 attacks a month, 52 percent missed holiday celebrations due to their condition and as many as 92 percent missed a hobby-related activity. The toll that headaches take on productivity is staggering: Migraine sufferers lose 157 million work days each year and the price tag for America's employers is $10 billion a year.
Says Dr Elliot Shevel, medical director at The Headache Clinic: "No similar survey has been conducted in South Africa as yet. However, research from around the world indicates that headache problems cut right across nations, cultures, and races, affecting a similar percentage of people in most countries.
"That means that as many as four to five million South Africans could be suffering from migraine headaches and that migraines could cost the country hundreds of millions of Rand in lost productivity each year."
Shevel says that many migraine patients feel that their families, co-workers and friends do not understand the condition. Migraines can severely damage quality of life at home and at work: many patients believe that they have lost out on opportunities to advance their careers because of migraines, for example.
"It is important that migraine patients, and those they live and work with, understand that migraine pain is a real neurobiological disease that can be treated following proper diagnosis," he adds.
Shevel says that headaches come in a variety of forms, the most common of which is the tension headache. The migraine is a category of its own, with symptoms that include throbbing head pain, nausea and sensitivity to noise and light. An attack can last between four and 72 hours. Migraines are hereditary and three times more prevalent among women than men.
Patients can take control of their condition by seeking treatment and keeping track of the factors (stress, diet and so on) that seem to trigger their migraines.
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