Evidence Hub

The epidemiology and unmet need of migraine in five european countries: results from the national health and wellness survey

Gianluca Coppola, Joshua Brown, Amanda R. Mercadante, Sheila Drakeley, N. Sternbach, Aaron Jenkins, K. H. Blakeman, A. Gendolla

BMC Public Health, 2025

21 citations

Abstract

Despite the high global prevalence, burden, and direct and indicated costs, migraines are often under-diagnosed and undertreated. Understanding the prevalence of migraine and unmet needs is crucial for improving diagnosis and treatment across Europe (EU) countries; however, real-world studies are limited. This retrospective cross-sectional survey utilized weighted patient-reported data from the 2020 National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS) in five EU (5EU) countries (France, Germany, United Kingdom [UK], Italy, and Spain). The survey included adults aged ≥ 18 years who self-reported experiencing migraines in the past 12 months and had a physician’s diagnosis. The survey assessed migraine prevalence by age and sex. Other measures included migraine characteristics, disability assessment, migraine frequency (monthly migraine days [MMDs] and monthly headache days [MHDs], menstrually-related migraine, treatment patterns, and provider characteristics. The study included 7,311 respondents with diagnosed migraines, representing an estimated 30.5 million adults with a weighted prevalence of 11.5% in the 5EU. Spain had the highest prevalence (14.0%), followed by Italy, France, UK, and Germany. Migraine prevalence was highest in the age group of 30–39 years, and females had nearly twice the prevalence compared to males. About 56% of respondents reported disability due to migraines, with highest percentage reported in Germany (66.0%). About 46% of female respondents reported…

Read the paper

Related studies

Go deeper in Evidence Hub

Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.

Open this study Sign up free