Tension-type headache: comparison with migraine without aura and cervicogenic headache. The Vågå study of headache epidemiology

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to describe the prevalence of tension-type headache (T-TH) in rural Norway, and 1838 citizens aged 18-65 years were included. Features indicating neck involvement were also looked for. T-TH was compared with migraine without aura and with cervicogenic headache (CEH) considering both these features and typical migraine traits. Face-to-face interviews were carried out, based on an elaborate questionnaire. The IHS criteria, first version, were used for T-TH diagnosis. A T-TH prevalence of 34% was found. In T-TH and migraine without aura, typical CEH features, such as reduced range of motion in the neck and mechanical provocation of pain, were far less prominent than in CEH. Typical migraine traits, e.g. photophobia, were much less frequently present in T-TH and CEH than in migraine without aura. T-TH is, in all probability, not a CEH variant and vice versa.