[Epidemiology, pathophysiology, and symptoms of headaches].

According to representative analyses about 71% of people in Germany suffer from headaches at least occasionally during their life. There are about 9 million people suffering from migraine and about 29 million people who have tension-type headache. These data underline the great socio-economic importance of these types of headaches. In principle the primary headache disorders migraine (with and without aura) as well as the episodic tension-type headache are indications for self-medication. In order to professionally guide these patients, the pharmacist requires a profound knowledge about the different types of headaches and their origin.