Prevalence and comorbidity of migraine headache: results from the Singapore Mental Health Study 2016

Background and aim: Migraine is a highly prevalent and disabling neurological disorder associated with a wide range of psychiatric comorbidities. Studies have revealed that those with migraine headache and coexisting psychiatric disorders have poorer treatment outcomes and increased disability. The study aims to establish the prevalence, correlates, and comorbidities of migraine headache among the multi-ethnic Asian population in Singapore.

Method: Data were extracted from the Singapore Mental Health Study 2016 (SMHS 2016), a cross-sectional epidemiological survey of a nationally representative sample. Face-to-face interviews were completed with 6126 participants between 2016 and 2017. The data relating to chronic medical conditions, psychiatric conditions, and 30-day functioning and disability were captured using the World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) version 3.0.

Results: The lifetime prevalence for migraine headache in the Singapore general population was 8.2%. Malay ethnicity (versus Chinese), female gender (versus male), and diploma holders (versus university) were significantly more likely to experience migraine headache. Participants belonging to the older age group (65 years and above versus 18-34 years of age), and those who were economically inactive (versus employed) were less likely to experience migraine headache. The mean age of onset for migraine was 26.4 years (SD = 11.1). Poisson regression analyses showed that migraine headache was also significantly associated with psychiatric conditions such as major depressive disorder (MDD) (prevalence ratio (PR), 1.80; 95% CI, 1.25-2.58), bipolar disorder (BD) (PR, 3.55; 95% CI, 2.29-5.51), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) (PR, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.12-3.69), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) (PR, 2.20; 95% CI, 1.49-3.26), and alcohol use disorder (AUD) (PR, 1.93; 95% CI, 1.20-3.08). Those with migraine headache were significantly associated with poor functioning and disability compared to those without migraine headache.

Conclusions and discussion: Our study showed significant associations between migraine headache and psychiatric disorders, as well as with role functioning and disability. The findings of our study emphasise the need for screening for psychiatric comorbidity among those with migraine and the development of appropriate interventions for this group.