Satapathy Prakasini, Chauhan Shubham, Gaidhane Shilpa, Bishoyi Ashok Kumar, Priya G Padma, Jayabalan Karthikeyan, Mishra Swati, Sharma Shilpa, Bushi Ganesh, Shabil Muhammed, Syed Rukshar, Kundra Kamal, Dev Navneet, Ansar Sabah, Sah Sanjit, Zahiruddin Quazi Syed, Samal Shailesh Kumar, Jena Diptismita, Goh Khang Wen
Centre of Research Impact and Outcome, Chitkara University, Rajpura, India.
Faculty of Data Science and Information Technology, INTI International University, Nilai, Malaysia.
Front Neurol. 2025 Mar 5;16:1514712. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1514712. eCollection 2025.
Headache disorders, including migraines and tension-type headaches (TTH), are major contributors to global disability. In South Asia, where these conditions are often underdiagnosed, their burden has grown substantially. This study evaluates trends in headache disorders across eight South Asian countries from 1990 to 2021, using data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2021.
Data from the GBD study were analysed to evaluate incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability (YLDs) for headache disorders and their subtypes. Trends were assessed using absolute numbers and age-standardized rates, with demographic patterns by age and gender examined to identify vulnerable populations. Joinpoint regression analysis was employed to detect significant temporal shifts.
From 1990 to 2021, headache disorders in South Asia rose from 114.2 million to 206.8 million in incidence, and from 367.4 million to 698.5 million in prevalence, with YLDs nearly doubling from 6.0 million to 11.6 million. Migraines accounted for 294.4 million cases, while TTH contributed 495.4 million cases, with YLDs increasing by 92.88 and 99.35%, respectively. Afghanistan saw the highest relative growth, while India contributed the largest absolute burden. Women and middle-aged adults were disproportionately affected, with the highest prevalence observed in females aged 30-34 years. The Maldives showed dramatic increases in TTH-related YLDs, highlighting disparities in smaller nations.
The rising burden of headache disorders in South Asia highlights the need for region-specific strategies targeting high-burden subtypes, countries, and vulnerable populations to mitigate their disabling impacts.
头痛疾病，包括偏头痛和紧张型头痛（TTH），是导致全球残疾的主要因素。在南亚，这些疾病常常未得到充分诊断，其负担已大幅增加。本研究利用《2021年全球疾病负担（GBD）研究》的数据，评估了1990年至2021年期间八个南亚国家头痛疾病的趋势。
对GBD研究的数据进行分析，以评估头痛疾病及其亚型的发病率、患病率和伤残调整生命年（YLDs）。使用绝对数和年龄标准化率评估趋势，并检查年龄和性别的人口模式以确定脆弱人群。采用Joinpoint回归分析来检测显著的时间变化。
从1990年到2021年，南亚头痛疾病的发病率从1.142亿例增至2.068亿例，患病率从3.674亿例增至6.985亿例，YLDs几乎翻了一番，从600万例增至1160万例。偏头痛占2.944亿例，而TTH占4.954亿例，YLDs分别增加了92.88%和99.35%。阿富汗的相对增长最高，而印度的绝对负担最大。妇女和中年成年人受影响尤为严重，30 - 34岁女性的患病率最高。马尔代夫与TTH相关的YLDs显著增加，凸显了小国之间的差异。
南亚头痛疾病负担的上升凸显了制定针对高负担亚型、国家和脆弱人群的区域特定战略以减轻其致残影响的必要性。
