Publications
APS Bulletin • Volume 17, Number 1, 2007
Survey: One in Three Workers Suffers from Bad Headaches
But few seek medical help
Ever get a headache that hurts so much you just can’t work?
You’re not alone. A new survey of 1,400 working adults in the United States finds that more than one-third of them gets at least one bad headache each month. Of those who say their headache affects their work, about half contend they work less effectively and productively as a result of their headache.
Despite this, fewer than 20% of frequent headache sufferers seek medical attention, according to the survey of the Institute for Health and Productivity Management (IHPM), Scottsdale, AZ, which tracks employee health and productivity.
The survey, which was funded by GlaxoSmithKline, also finds that nearly 90% of 508 survey respondents reported developing a bad headache at work. Of these, a third left work early or rested in their office and more than a quarter called in sick.
Survey respondents said that their headaches were triggered by bright or fluorescent lights at work (48%), an irregular eating schedule due to work (43%), insufficient sleep caused by work (37%), and job-related stress (23%). Approximately 20% didn’t cite a trigger for their headache.
Migraine Connection
Many of the respondents who reported bad headaches described symptoms consistent with a migraine, including moderate to severe throbbing pain (53%), pain on one side of the head (43%), and sensitivity to light and sound (33%). Still, these headache sufferers did not consult a physician, says migraine expert Merle Diamond, MD, associate director of the Diamond Headache Clinic, Chicago, who notes that there are about 14 million U.S. migraine sufferers.
Past studies confirm that migraines are often misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or underdiagnosed. A 2001 survey published in Headache of the American Headache Society (AHS) found that fewer than half of 20,000 survey respondents who met diagnostic criteria for having a migraine actually received a diagnosis of migraine from their physician.
Another 2004 study found that nearly one in four patients who consult a physician about their migraine or probable migraine received a proper diagnosis.
Cost Burden for Employers
Migraines also have punishing results on employers’ bottom line. According to results of a recent study that looked at the financial impact of migraines on large U.S. employers, migraines cost employers nearly $10 billion a year in migraine-related absenteeism. The study was presented at an AHS meeting last summer.
“Workplace productivity is affected by a variety of factors, but health issues like migraine headaches are major influencers,” says IHPM President and CEO Sean Sullivan. “Good management means employees talking to their physician about their symptoms and developing an effective treatment plan, and for employers it also means recognizing the work place impact of common health issues, and encouraging employees to take control of their health.”