Prevalence of migraine headache in a rural area of northern Tanzania: a community-based door-to-door survey
AS Winkler
Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Care and Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany,
Haydom Lutheran Hospital,
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
W Dent
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Dr Wolfgang Dent, Neurointensive Care Unit, Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Zurich, Frauenklinikstrasse 10, CH-8091 Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorB Stelzhammer
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorK Kerschbaumsteiner
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorM Meindl
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorWBP Matuja
Department of Neurology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania,
Search for more papers by this authorE Schmutzhard
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorAS Winkler
Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Care and Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany,
Haydom Lutheran Hospital,
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
W Dent
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Dr Wolfgang Dent, Neurointensive Care Unit, Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Zurich, Frauenklinikstrasse 10, CH-8091 Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorB Stelzhammer
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorK Kerschbaumsteiner
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorM Meindl
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorWBP Matuja
Department of Neurology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania,
Search for more papers by this authorE Schmutzhard
Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria and
Search for more papers by this authorA.S.W. and W.D. contributed equally to the writing of this manuscript.
Abstract
Our aim was to assess the 1-year prevalence of migraine headache in a rural population within the catchment area of the Haydom Lutheran Hospital in northern Tanzania. From December 2003 until June 2004 a community-based door-to-door survey was carried out, using a questionnaire based on the criteria of the International Headache Society, including 1192 households with 7412 individuals selected by multistage cluster-random sampling. The overall 1-year prevalence of migraine headache was found to be 4.3% [316/7412, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.8, 4.7] with an age-adjusted rate of 6.0% and a male : female ratio of 1:2.94 (P < 0.001). Of these individuals, 132 did not fulfil all criteria for migraine headache, hence, these patients had to be classified as migrainous disorders with a crude prevalence rate of 1.8% (132/7412. 95% CI 1.5, 2.1). The remaining 184 patients met all criteria for migraine resulting in a 1-year prevalence of 2.5% (184/7412, 95% CI 2.1, 2.9) and a male : female ratio of 1:2.51 (P < 0.001). The present survey shows that migraine headache is not uncommon in northern Tanzania. The recorded prevalence of migraine headache is located within the median of previous African prevalence surveys, which confirms the trend of lower migraine frequencies in rural Africa compared with western countries.
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