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The PACE study: past-year prevalence of tension-type headache and its subtypes in Parma’s adult general population

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Abstract

The mean global prevalence of tension-type headache (TTH) in adult is 42 %. To date, there have been no Italian studies on TTH prevalence in the adult general population. Therefore, we conducted a cross-sectional study, called PACE, aimed at detecting the prevalence of primary headaches in the city of Parma’s adult general population. 904 subjects representative of Parma’s adult general population were interviewed face to face by a physician of our Headache Centre. Crude past-year prevalence for definite TTH was 19.4 % (95 % CI 16.8–21.9; 18.4 %, 95 % CI 14.6–22.3 in men, and 20.1 %, 95 % CI 16.6–23.6 in women), namely, 9.0 % (95 % CI 7.1–10.8) for infrequent TTH, 9.8 % (95 % CI 7.9–11.8) for frequent TTH, and 0.6 % (95 % CI 0.1–1) for chronic TTH. Crude prevalence for probable TTH was 2.3 % (95 % CI 1.3–3.3; 2 %, 95 % CI 0.6–3.4 in men, and 2.6 %, 95 % CI 1.2–3.9 in women). Our results indicate a TTH prevalence (19.4 %) at the lower limit of data ranges for Western countries, and prevalence rates for infrequent forms (9 %) do not appear different from those of frequent forms (9.8 %).

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge Merck Sharp & Dohme Italia for financial support [grant number DR no. 69 of 28.01.2009].

Conflict of interest

None declared.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Headache Centre, University of Parma, Ospedale Maggiore, via Gramsci 14, 43125, Parma, Italy

    T. Ferrante, G. C. Manzoni, M. Russo, A. Taga & P. Torelli

  2. Department of BioNeC, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    C. Camarda

  3. Department of Public Health, University of Parma, Parma, Italy

    L. Veronesi, C. Pasquarella & G. Sansebastiano

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  1. T. Ferrante
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  2. G. C. Manzoni
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  3. M. Russo
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  4. A. Taga
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  5. C. Camarda
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  6. L. Veronesi
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  7. C. Pasquarella
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  8. G. Sansebastiano
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  9. P. Torelli
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Correspondence to T. Ferrante.

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Ferrante, T., Manzoni, G.C., Russo, M. et al. The PACE study: past-year prevalence of tension-type headache and its subtypes in Parma’s adult general population. Neurol Sci 36, 35–42 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-014-1888-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-014-1888-0

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